Cold Insanity
by Luminesyra
Summary: "...It wouldn't be the first time I could see something others couldn't." Even at seventeen, Willow Bronwyn can see Jack Frost. The trouble is, he isn't the first person she had seen that others couldn't. She thought they had left her years ago, but things are never as they seem, now are they? Rated T for mild language and later violence. Eventual JackxOC
1. Wind in the Willow

**Hello, everyone, and welcome to my very first RotG fic! I don't really know what else to say, other than please review. I know everyone says that, but I am more motivated to update when I have reviews saying that people like my story. Or reviews to tell me what I need to fix/do differently.**

**But I digress.**

Enormous snowflakes drifted down from the sky in dizzying flurries, before settling onto the ground in a thick blanket of dazzling white. Others floated onto the flocks of kids and teenagers, the cottony flakes sticking to their thick coats and turning their fair cheeks rosy as packed balls of the fluffy ice flew through the air.

Laughter from the people on the ground rang through the air, reaching the ears of many of the adults and bringing smiles to their faces.

In other words, another typical day in Burgess.

Sun streamed through the thinning clouds, lighting up the snow like the ground was quilted in millions of multi-faceted diamonds, throwing tiny rainbows across everything.

Delighted giggles came from the children, whom were engaged in, yet another, snowball fight. Misshapen balls of snow whipped back and forth, however, there were some perfectly round snowballs that were thrown with chilling accuracy, hitting their mark almost every time.

Of course, it sure helps your aim when you're a Winter Spirit who can lace them with magic to make them fly straight. But who's counting, right?

The one and only, Jack Frost.

As a newly appointed Guardian of Fun, only a handful of the kids from Burgess could see him, thanks to Jaime. Now, eight years later, kids all over the world could see him. Not even close to as many as North, Tooth, or even Sandman, but that didn't bother Jack. He would have been happy if it was only Jaime, because *someone* believed.

Now, he spent most of his time in Burgess, or, more specifically, nailing his first believers with snow.

"Ha, you can't-" _POOF_ "Jack!" Jaime yelled. "Eight years later, and you still go for the face?! C'mon!"

Even though he was in his early twenties, Jack and Jaime has maintained a close friendship. Jaime volunteered at the Burgess Library, telling dozens of stories about his friendship with the great Winter Guardian, Jack Frost. Most of the older kids thought it was a good story, but only a story. But the younger kids held onto every word like a lifeline. They knew the truth. They could see it.

"You wouldn't get hit in the face so much, if you'd have learned to dodge in those eight years, Jamie. I don't go easy on anyone, not even you." Jack teased, another snowball forming in his hand, just out of Jamie's line of vision.

"Oh, nice to see how you treat your friends there, buddy. I feel so appreciated, y'know, Last Believer and all that. I mean, it's not like you wouldn't have been _doomed_ or anything, is it wasn't for Yours Tru-" he was cut off again as another pale blue snowball collided with his face in a powdery explosion. He mock-glared from beneath the ice at Jack for a moment, before both of them broke into laughter and Jaime brushed the snow from his eyes.

"Would you like some more appreciation?" Jack asked innocently, another snowball already in his hand, his curved staff slung casually over his shoulder.

Jaime glanced at his watch, before shaking the snow from his hair. "Actually, I have to go. I have the next installment of The Winter Guardian expected in fifteen minutes, but I'll catch up with you later!" He waved and made his way to his bicycle, which leaned against the park's wooden railing.

Jack leaned against the simple brown staff as the navy blue shape of Jamie's jacket faded into the distance.

Small, bobbing heads scurried around the park as their snowballs sailed through the air, though few landed their intended targets. Most of the snowballs hit someone, but rarely was it the person it was supposed to, thus drawing in more people.

Eyes bluer than the winter sky scanned the field, a small smile of content tugging at the Winter Spirit's lips at the ecstasy radiating from everyone. Frost coated trees at the edge of the park's wooded area provided scant cover from the hail of snow.

Jack's eves narrow as a slender silhouette slips into the trees, the figure moving back into the denser parts of the forest.

Intrigued, wind swirled around his bare feet, picking him up as he followed whoever had gone into the trees.

As the trees grew thicker, he began hopping from tree to tree with a preternatural grace, frost blooming beneath his feet to mark his path.

Now close enough to see the figure clearly, the knee-high black converse, laces a deep purple, faded black, paint-splattered skinny jeans and thick black cotton jacket, hood up, suggested either goth or someone trying to fade into the shadows. A light gray canvas bag was slung over their shoulder.

The slim, curved frame suggested a girl, though he still couldn't see their face.

So focused on the strange person in the woods alone, he didn't notice exactly what was in the clearing ahead, though it was obviously their destination.

His breath caught when they brushed the snow from a rock that rested against one of the trees, facing the pond that, in a way, made him who he was today.

Bag slipping from their shoulder, the hood was pulled down as they slid onto the boulder. Long dark auburn hair tumbled out, hanging nearly to their waist in loose waves, the ends curling around, confirming that they were a girl.

Finally, she turned.

Jack's eyes seemed to betray him at her face. Never had he seen such gentle, subtle beauty before. She wasn't beautiful in the sense of a model, but more in the sense of someone with a completely different view of the world, the true beauty she saw in everything being reflected within herself.

Her eyes flicked around at the scenery, allowing Jack to see their odd coloration. They were a soft green, but were laced and edged with streaks of a light gray that matched her bag, the color brought out by the shade of her hair.

He watched as she unhooked the brass latch of the bag, pulling out a sketchbook and a small pencil case.

Floating to the tree she leaned against, he peered down from above her as the flipped the sketchbook open. The drawing on the page was one of the frozen pond, everything sketched down, some areas in impeccable detail, others only partially completed, but still skillfully drawn.

She lifted earbuds to her ears and set a playlist on her phone to shuffle before pulling out a wooden and mechanical pencil, starting where she had apparently left off.

His gaze was transfixed on the methodical motions of her hand, the scene slowly coming to life beneath the steady strokes of her pencils.

He started when a low hum emanated from her throat as she began to unconsciously hum to whatever song she was listening to. The humming became louder and she began to mumble the lyrics, until she was full-out singing the song, her voice following the smooth melody surprisingly well for someone who probably wasn't aware she was singing.

_So tell me what you want to hear  
Something that'll light those ears  
So sick of all the insincere  
I'm gonna give all my secretes away_

_This time  
Don't need another perfect lie  
Don't care if critics ever jump in line  
I'm gonna give all my secrets away_

Jack closed his eyes and leaned back on the branch he was perched on. As he shifted, he brushed some snow from the bark, causing to tumble onto the girl's shoulder.

She stopped singing her head jerking up sharply to see what had fallen on her, but what caught Jack off guard was when her eyes widened at the sight of him, then narrowed in anger.

"Why did you follow me here?" Her tone was surprisingly musical despite her anger, though there was plenty of menace as well in her narrowed eyes.

"I was curious why you were going into such an isolated part of the woods alone- wait, you can see me?" His eyes widened with his own shock than a girl her age could see him.

"Of course I can see you, why wouldn't I be able to?" Anger turned to suspicion. "Why shouldn't I be able to see you?"

Jack opened his mouth to answer, but when to words came out, he realized he wasn't quite sure how to answer her question. It wasn't every day a spirit, whom was usually invisible, was asked how he was seen. Honestly, it's a question he never thought he would need an answer to.

"Well, I'm waiting." Irritation colored the girl's tone heavily, her green-gray eyes pouring on more and more suspicion as the silence stretched on.

"Honestly, you wouldn't believe the truth." he mumbled.

"Go ahead and try me, I'm pretty open-minded."

Her statement actually caught Jack off-guard, his thoughts immediately wondering if that was why she could see him.

"Well, here goes nothing. I am a Winter Spirit placed here by the Man in the Moon, whom of which hasn't spoken to me in around three hundred years. I bring the snow here, but no one over around eight one can see me, because they don't believe in me, with the exception of Jamie and his friends. At least until now. " He sighed, waiting for disbelieving laughter. He glanced up after a few seconds of silence.

The girl was staring at him with a mahogany eyebrow peaked into a high arch.

"Hm, a Winter Spirit. Well, I won't _completely_ write you off as crazy, unless you can't prove it." Her tone wasn't teasing or mocking in the slightest. It was laced with genuine curiosity that something, _someone_, like this could really exist.

"So, you don't think I'm some random weirdo lying to you. You believe me?" It took him a good few moments to realize that this strange girl, _who could see him_, was actually giving him a chance.

"I'm not saying I do or don't, I'm saying that I'll give you a chance to prove yourself not a liar or crazy. It wouldn't be the first time I could see something others couldn't." Much of her initial irritation had been replaced by a true curiosity, though her tone still dripped with impatience.

Though the second half of what she said intrigued Jack, he thought now might not be the best time to ask about it.

Flipping his staff over his shoulder, he reached up to snap a small branch from the tree he had been perched it, holding it in front of the girl's face as he sent front creeping up the exposed bark from his fingers, until the entire stick was encased in frost.

Flicking the stick around to grasp its top, he handed the branch to the girl. She reached for it without hesitation, grasping the frozen branch as the frost began to melt beneath her palms.

"You can control, ice and frost, not just snow." The awe in her tone didn't escape Jack. She tossed the stick into the snow beside the pond, her attention back on Jack.

"Okay, so you're a Winter Spirit, but people like you aren't here just to make it snow so that kids don't have to go to school. What else is it you do?"

It was a moment before he answered, he was still trying to process the fact she had believed him so easily.

"Wait, that's it? You believe that I'm a spirit invisible to everyone but kids?"

"Well, considering I just watched you freeze a tree branch right in front of my eyes, you would have a harder time convincing me you were just human, at this point." she said, admittedly, rationally.

"I guess you're right, when you put it that way." The girl smirked, then asked Jack again what else he did.

"Right. Well, I am also one of four other Guardians, whom were all put here my Manny, to protect children around the world." He pointed at the moon, so she would know who Manny was.

"Who are the other Guardians?"

"Well, there's North, the Guardian of Wonder, Tooth, the Guardian of Memories, Sandy, the Guardian of Dreams and Bunny, the Kangaroo of Hope." Jack smirked when he named off Bunny.

"Sandy and Tooth sound like the Sandman and Tooth Fairy." she commented and Jack nodded. "So who are the others?"

"Well, North is better known to little kids as Santa and Bunny is the Easter Bunny." Jack explained.

"Oh, I get it! Santa is Wonder, because someone who can see the wonder in everything can see toys under a tree and a flying sled. Bunny is Hope, because Easter signifies new beginnings, even in Christian culture. Sandy is pretty obvious, but how does the Tooth Fairy, of all people, protect memories?" There was an edge of excitement as things began clicking into place for her.

"Well, she collects the baby teeth from when you're a child. The baby teeth hold all of your childhood memories and it's her job to held the kids remember them when they need to." Jack was now perched like a bird on top of his staff, his incredible balance earning another shocked look from the girl.

"So, now that I've told you all about us, why don't you tell me about you. I don't even know your name." Jack gave the girl a pointed look.

"Well, you've told me about all of the Guardians. Except for you. I don't know your name, either, but if I had to guess, I'd say Jack Frost. You look a little young to be Old Man Winter, and I don't know of any other winter personifications. Unless you're Frosty the Snowman." She rolled her eyes at her own statement.

Jack's smirk confirmed her first guess.

"And now that I know yours, my name is Willow. Willow Bronwyn." A small smile graced her face for the first time.

"Okay, Willow." Jack said, returning her with a half- smile half-smirk. "Y'know, you're a pretty good artist. Not a half-bad singer, either. "

Willow blushed, realizing he had been watching her a lot longer than she had initially thought. She paused at the second half of his statement.

"Wait, what do you mean 'not a half-bad singer?'. I wasn't singing." her eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

"Actually, you were, but you started off by mumbling, so I don't think you knew it at the time." he had floated up into the tree now, a soft breeze ruffling his feathery white hair.

"Oh. Well, crap. I'm sorry to have subjected you to that." she ran her numb hands through her hair. She glanced up at Jack as he lazily hopped from branch to branch, effortlessly balancing like a trapeze artist. She studied his movements for a moment, before grasping the low-growing braches of the tree and pulling herself up.

"You weren't subjecting me to anything, it didn't sound all that bad for someone who didn't know she was singing, let alone trying." Jack kept a careful eye on Willow's feet, not wanting her to slip, but her footing was firm and sure against the icy branches as she slipped from branch to branch with ease.

"Then maybe a solid year of private lessons and choir are paying off after all." she murmured. Finally stopping a branch level with the one Jack was perched on, she sat down on the slim branch opposite to him, though her small frame hardly caused the branch to move at all.

For a few moments, they just sat in silence, the two looking out over the frozen pond and the expanse of forest.

"You know, I never noticed how nice the view truly was up here before. I just came up here to get away from… never mind." Willow abruptly cut off her sentence, but before Jack could ask her about it, she glanced over at the sun, realizing how late it had gotten.

"Oh, shit!" she cursed under her breath, though Jack heard her anyway. "My mom is going to flip a table! I should have been home almost two hours ago." She slid from the branch, seemingly into open air, but when Jack peered down in alarm, she had grabbed a hold of another branch, swinging with a skill she could only have acquired by having climbed this tree dozens, maybe hundreds, of times. In a matter of seconds, she was at the base of the tree.

She broke into a sprint the moment she hit the ground, snatching her bag from the ground before racing out of the woods like the devil was at her heels. Despite her speed, however, Jack caught up with her quickly, landing in front of her before the pond was even out of site.

"Whoa, wait!" he held up his hands and she skidded to a stop, but not before slamming into Jack with a lot more force than someone her size should have managed.

Willow glared up at Jack as she brushed the snow from her hair and eyes. "What was that for?" she asked, not sounding all too happy about being thrown into the Winter Spirit. Jack held out his hand to help her up, and, after a moment of receiving a look to kill, she accepted it and he pulled her to her feet.

"I was going to say, I can get you home faster. Where do you live?" His question caught her off guard. A Winter Spirit, whom she had met just a few hours ago, wanted to take her _home_?

"Um, two streets behind the library, with the three big oak trees in the backyard, but that isn't necessary, I can wal- _WHOA_!" A sharp gasp escaped her lips as Jack lurched forward, grasping her around the waist, and taking to the skies.

Her arms locked around his neck, so she would neither fall, nor choke him, as she screamed, "_WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU THINKING?! I CAN'T JUST FLY TO MY HOUSE!"_ She looked to the ground in terror, her arms slightly tightening.

"I don't want you to get in any more trouble that you have to. It's my fault you were out there so late." he smirked as Willow's arms clutched his neck. "You're not afraid of heights or anything, are you?" he asked playfully.

"Not usually, but these are slightly different circumstances." she said, still looking nervously at the ground. "It isn't every day a person is scoped up and flown across a city.

"True, but I promise I won't drop you." Jack said reassuringly. They were nearing the trio of trees that marked her house. He set her down gently behind the cover of the ancient structures. "Here we are. You better get inside, before… actually, you stopped there. I expect an explanation next time, though." he grinned, before taking to the skies once more, disappearing in seconds.

She stared at the sky for a moment longer, before snapping back to reality. Hoisting her bag into her shoulder, she stepped into her house as quietly as possible, hoping her mother was still asleep. She didn't breathe normally until the door to her bedroom clicked softly behind her.

She slid into her bed, still clothed, after unzipping the long zipped down the back of her shoes. Her hands were still numb from the cold, but it was the chill at her waist that lingered the longest, where Jack's cold hand had grasped her waist.

She closed her eyes, slipping into what would be the most restful sleep she had gotten in a long time.

**And that concludes chapter one!**

**Mkay, before people start assuming this is just another JackxMary-Sue story, I would like to point out that most of my human OCs, I base upon myself, so I don't end up with a Mary-Sue. Yes, I can draw, (check my DeviantArt, username SilverGoddess666), yes, I have been in private voice lessons and chior for the past year and I qualify for All-State, so I can't be all that bad, yes, I can climb trees like that, though I can't do any other sports besides archery and I can only do that in certain trees that I've practiced in for years. I also personally own any clothing I put my OCs in, so I don't put them in leather jackets and boots to make them seem like badasses. My eyes look like that and my hair is that texture, though mine is dark brown. I won't give Willow, or any other human OC, any other ability I don't have, unless something supernatural comes in.**

**I hope this diminishes any thought of Mary-Sueishness in my OC.**

**Please review, I will update that much sooner if you do!**


	2. Painful Realizations

**Hello again!**

_**Seven **_**reviews in less than a day?! I've never had such instantaneous gratification on the first chapter of a story before! I feel so loved!**

**By some miracle of nature, I am updating the next day, which has NEVER happened. Usually, it takes me a few weeks to update, but I was so ecstatic by all of your reviews, I just had to. See, reviews have a powerful effect.**

**FanFicCriTicTheThird****- I'm going to call you FFC3 from here on out, should you so review again. Congratulations, you were my first reviewer! This story hadn't been up for more than ten minutes, when I had emails popping up on my phone from your activity. Thanks!**

**TigerLilly1995- I am so glad I was able to captivate your attention, even before I have established the plot!**

**luna corabella and MoonGirl1155- Thanks so much!**

**Fluffythorne- I already texted you, so your questions were answered.**

**KikaKatTIOI- You guys ought to know who she is. If not, go to her profile and read her story, **_**Before Jack Frost**_**. It is creative and rather well thought out. I hope you see this, Kika! *cheesey hypnotic voice* Follow me and love me…**

**Lokirka- I'm glad you liked my OC(whom is basically me, with a different name and hair color. Are you sure we aren't long lost sisters?), I am trying very hard for her to not come across as a Mary Sue(which is why I based her off of myself, so we have the same abilities and flaws, because I'm not perfect, so she won't be, either), but that's always hard to establish in the first chapter. ONEREPUBLIC FOREVER!(Actually, Imagine Dragons is my favorite band, but OneRepublic is a VERY close second)**

Willow started as the door to the coffee shop chimed, the glass swinging open to reveal the morning's first customer. A few flakes of the gently falling snow drifted through the door before it closed.

She smiled vaguely in recognition of the person whom had walked through the door. "Hey, Mia. What can I get you this morning?"

Her regular returned the smile. "Oh, just a cup of hot chocolate, but can you use that Spanish vanilla in it again? It made all the difference in the world for flavor."

"Sure thing." Willow's hands moved swiftly as she made the drink, her fingers grabbing the components automatically, following the motions of a thousand repetitions. Companionable silence hung in the shop, neither wanting to disturb, or minding, the quiet. The scent of coffee heavily perfumed the air, its hearty aroma bringing warmth with a single sniff.

Crossing to a scant-used cabinet, Willow removed a small, unmarked bottle, dripping a few drops of the deep brown liquid into the cup before snapping the plastic lid onto the Styrofoam rim. She picked up the cup, warmth seeping into her hand for a few moments, before handing the cup to Mia.

Taking a sip of the liquid, Mia sighed. "Thanks, Willow." She handed the girl a ten, but when she went to get change, Mia waved her off. "No, that's alright, sweetie, keep the change."

Willow paused. A seven-fifty tip? The hot chocolate may have been good, but not _that_ good. "No, Mia, it's fine, I-"

"Nonsense! You haven't gotten my order wrong since you started working here when you were fifteen, and now, you'll be eighteen soon. I find that to have gone a little underappreciated from you. You're so quiet and, some days, you look like you didn't get a wink of sleep, but you never perform any less. Take it, dear, you deserve it." With that, Mia left the coffee shop, leaving Willow with the leftover money in her hands.

She stared at it for a few minutes, almost just putting it in cash register anyway, but at the last moment, she reconsidered and slipped it into her bag. Why not? The things Mia said were true, some days, well, most days, she _did_ feel underappreciated. Enduring endless crap from her mother, having no friends and… no, it wouldn't hurt anyone. Someone was trying to do something _nice_ for her, for a change. Why not enjoy it?

She stood behind the counter, still not having moved, still staring at the door, wondering if, maybe just maybe, she really _did_ have a friend who cared about her.

(*)

"You can go now, Willow. See you tomorrow!" the owner with the ever-ironic name of Joe, called to her from the back of the shop.

"Thanks, Joe, see you later." she stepped out from behind the counter, shrugging into her thick jacket and pulling up the hood, before shouldering her bag and heading outside.

The icy wind danced through her hair, teasing the ends of her mahogany locks against her cheeks. The snow was falling down a bit more heavily that before, just enough to turn her cheeks and nose rosy after only a few minutes, but not enough to make her fingers numb, though they were currently buried in the jacket's deep pockets.

She didn't need to be home for another few hours, so she started off towards the forest again, hoping to finish her drawing.

She wasn't far from the tree line, when, what felt like, an entire drift of snow was unceremoniously dumped onto her head, though she nowhere near any trees and wasn't standing underneath anything. Grumbling, she shook the snow from her hooded head and dusted off her clothing. Whipping around, she glared at the white haired boy floating behind her, his shoulders shaking with laughter.

His laughter cut off when a large quantity of snow entered his mouth from the snowball that was thrown into his face. He brushed the ice from his eyes to see Willow striding into the forest, her pace just as long and even as before.

"Hey!" he flew to catch up. "I was only joking, Willow." he said, and her pace fractionally slowed.

"I know. It was a great joke. My favorite part is where you almost choked on your own snow." Sarcasm dripped from her tone like syrup, but it was teasing, though she never stopped walking. Jack landed in front of her to get her to stop.

"The pond is a good ten minutes into the woods, even with as fast as you walk. You wanna lift?" he asked, no longer teasing. He held out an alabaster hand. "I promise I won't go as fast as before."

Willow looked at his hand, and, for a moment, considered taking it, but just shook her head and continued walking.

"Suit yourself." Jack teased as he floated lazily beside her.

"Pardon me for not wanting to be pulled through the air at an unholy pace for someone whom has never even been on a airplane before, let alone be flown by a flying Winter Spirit." The retort rolled off of her tongue almost immediately, sarcasm still heavy in her tone.

"Yeah, sorry about that. I was trying to get you home, I didn't want you to get into more trouble. You didn't, did you?" curiosity hinted in his voice.

"No, the Universe was merciful enough to let my mother be asleep, so my only concern was not going into cardiac arrest from the heart attack you damn near gave me. Of which, I don't want to experience again." There was an edge to her tone that said she was ending the discussion, but Jack was not so easily swayed.

"Come on, please? I said I would be more careful! I won't let you fall, I promise, just give me one chance!" he landed in front of her, eyes pleading as he held out his hand again. "Just one chance."

Willow gave his hand a long look, before closing her eyes and exhaling out her nose.

"One chance, you'd better not screw this up, Frost." She took his icy hand, and he pulled her close, wrapping one arm around her waist as she locked her arms around his neck.

"Ready?" he asked, a playful twinkle in his ice blue eyes.

"Don't try anything crazy or stupid, and I might forgive you for this." she hissed, but, truthfully, she was a bit eager. When she wasn't rocketing across the sky against her will, it actually sounded rather exhilarating to fly.

Her heart leapt when Jack took off into the sky, though he didn't go much higher than the trees. They started moving forward, not too fast, but fast enough for the wind to pull back her hood and send her, already tangled, hair billowing in the wind.

Jack felt the initial tension in her arms ease up as they soared above the forest, her eyes wide with wonder as the trees whipped by beneath them. He glanced at her to see a smile slowly working its way across her face as she watched the bare trees blur together.

When they arrived at the pond, Willow was almost disappointed that their flight was over. It was even more thrilling that she hoped it would be.

Setting her down gently in the freshly fallen snow, Jack released his grip from around her waist and she removed her arms from around his neck.

"So, am I forgiven?" Jack asked, a mock-puppy expression plastered across his face.

She turned to him and smirked, but she couldn't hide the euphoria painted onto her delicate features. "I suppose you are, just this once."

Jack grinned and she began brushing the snow from the rock she had been sitting on the day before. As she sat down on it and began digging through her bag, Jack noticed a flash of silver from beneath her wild mess of hair. A medium sized crystal hung on a short, silver chain around her neck.

The pendant vanished from his line of vision when she leaned back against the tree, propping the sketchbook against her legs so all he could see were her black and purple converse. He drifted onto the branch above her head, perching there so he could watch her draw.

She had finished out most of the pond's finer details the day before, and was now concentrating on shading the scene in a way that kept the snow looking white, but gave it depth, as well. She was making steady progress, until she came to an area where the sun shone against the snow, and kept dabbing at the area with a kneaded eraser in frustration.

Finally, she flipped the book closed and slid off of the boulder.

"What's wrong?" Jack asked, curious why he had let the drawing get the better of her.

"I don't know. I've never been able to shade snow all that well. Every time I get to an area where there is sun on it, I can't get it right. I tried just not shading it and leaving it white, but it looks weird and has too much contrast on the page, but no matter how lightly I shade it, it never looks like it has the sun on it, just another patch of snow."

She shuffled around the snow for a moment, before hopping onto the frozen surface of the pond. Jack jumped forward in alarm, fully expecting her to fall through immediately, but the ice only emitted a dull thud as her Converse' rubber soled landed on its top.

She skidded a moment, before regaining her footing. After a minute of unsteady wobbling, she managed to push herself around a bit, moving like she was wearing rollerblades. Nothing fancy, but at least she didn't fall. Jack watched her, unable to move. His sister was at the forefront of his mind though she and Willow had no resemblance whatsoever, but seeing the girl on the pond gave him a sickening sense of déjà vu.

She glanced over at Jack to see him watching her with an expression somewhere between horror and terror.

"What's wrong?" she asked, her question mirroring Jack's previous one.

"It makes me a little nervous to see you on the ice like that. What if it broke?" The nervous edge to his voice wasn't simply over concern for her safety, though that was a large chunk of it.

"Relax, I do this all the time, and it hasn't broken yet." she brushed off his warning, confident the ice would hold.

"That's what I thought, too, three hundred and twenty four years ago." he said under his breath. "Still, you never know. I would feel better if you came back onto solid ground."

"This is solid! It's been frozen for weeks!" she stomped her foot firmly on its surface several times, Jack flinching with each _thud_ of her foot, to prove her point.

"Willow, please! Just get off the ice! I don't need a heart attack, either." he pleaded.

Grumbling, Willow made her way to the edge of the pond, the tension in Jack's shoulders slackening when she stepped onto the ground, unscathed.

"Happy now? One would think that you, of all people, would be least object to me skating on a pond I've skated on for years. If you can call pushing yourself around on boots and Converse skating." she remarked, a bite of venom in her tone, but a small part of her found it nice that he, even as a Winter Spirit, cared about her well-being.

"Yes, well, as both the Guardian of Fun and a Winter Spirit, I've seen more people fall through, what should be indestructible, ice, more times that I would care to admit." he said, though that wasn't entirely true. The only person he'd ever known to fall through the ice was himself, but it wasn't something he would ever wish on anyone. "Accidents happen."

"Okay, fine, no more ice! But if you're so worried about the ice breaking, couldn't you just freeze it over more?" she asked.

"Yes, probably, but that still won't guarantee that it will hold." Something had changed in the tone of Jack's voice. Though she wasn't quite sure what it meant, Willow backed off her tirade.

Instead, she scooped up her bag and began scaling the tree again. Her movements were swift and efficient as she climbed, her hands and feet finding the exact same places they had the day before. She had climbed the tree so many times before, she knew exactly where to grab and step to get her to the top the fastest.

She settled into a branch near the one she had sat on the day before, but this one had a snapped off stub right by her shoulder where she hung her bag. Obviously, this wasn't the first time she had sat up here, either.

Jack landed on a branch almost at her opposite, like they had been before, as she pulled her sketchbook and a pencil back out of her bag. Flipping to a blank page, she began roughly sketching out the scene in front of her. Though he didn't know it, she was drawing the landscape with Jack sitting in the branch as the focus of the piece.

He sat there for a few minutes, one leg dangling off of the branch, the other bent on the branch with his arm draped over it, gazing at the snowy forest. The only thing he would hear was the wind gently rustling the snow and the methodical scratching of a pencil of paper.

Finally, he glanced over to see Willow carefully pulling the drawing from her sketchbook, tearing down the perforated line as cleanly as she could.

"What did you draw?" he asked? She smiled coyly as she slipped the page into her bag, giving him a _you'll see_ look.

Before he could ask, she began her swinging decent down the tree, her shoes hitting the snow on the ground with a soft _crunch_ as she swung six feet to the ground.

"C'mon, let me see!" he said, drifting down to the ground.

"Nope, not yet."

"Well, will you at least tell me what you were talking about yesterday? You said I wasn't the first person that you could see that no one else cold. Who else have you seen? You also said you came here to get away from… someone, but you never said who. Can I ask what you meant about those things?" he leaned against his staff, as he talked, her expression immediately becoming guarded as soon as he asked his first question, and the second one didn't lighten it up any.

"Um, they aren't things I really like to bring up. I hadn't meant to say that, though I'm rather surprised you caught it." she mumbled, starting off through the forest again, though at a more reasonable speed.

Her eyes stayed locked straight ahead, unwavering stubborn-ness lacing her gaze.

Seeing her expression, Jack said, "You're not going to say anything, are you. At least not for a very long time."

"Nope."

Still drifting alongside her, Jack glanced into the sky to see the sun chasing the horizon.

"Will you at least let me take you home? You'll be there in under five minutes, verses thirty in the cold."

"I'll be cold either way, especially with the wind in my face." Her eyes never left the trees in front of her.

"True, but you'll be out of the cold faster and home faster if I fly you."

"Well, yay for me." she murmured.

"You'll be late again if I don't."

Willow slowed to a stop and sighed again. "Fine. However, if you try anything stupid, I will make you regret it in ways that you would have never thought a human girl could achieve." Her words were cold enough they made Jack want to shiver. Worse, he believed her.

Her arms locked around his neck once more and his arm tightened around her slender waist as he leapt into the dusk sky, moving into the low clouds.

He watched her once more as her eyes took in the rushing city lights beneath them, though they were too high up to be seen this late in the day.

Her jacket fluttered in the chilly wind, allowing occasional glimpse at her Angels&Airwaves T-shirt.

He set her down gently in the snow of her backyard behind the cover of the enormous oaks.

"Thanks, Jack. Maybe my mother won't be quite so pissed if I am actually home on time." She slipped her arms from his neck, but the note of dread in her voice made it clear she didn't want to be there.

Jack watched as her shoes quietly crunched through the snow, until the back door clicked softly behind her. After a few minutes, he turned to leave, but hadn't gotten higher than the trees when he heard yelling inside the house.

Alarmed, he begins circling her house I search of its source, until he saw Willow and, presumably, her mother arguing in that he assumed was Willow's room.

"I don't give a shit where you were or what time you got here! I didn't tell you that you could go anywhere!" her mother shouted, though her words were slurred.

"I don't see why it matters! I was only at the park for a little while after I left work!" Willow's protests were not anywhere near the level of her mother's banshee screams, but her hands shook violently from the anger she was trying so desperately to control.

"You don't need to be wasting your life at that damn park, you should be here, taking care of the person who _raised _you." her mother sneered.

Willow anger snapped. "_I AM NOT THE ONE WHO LIVES MY LIFE AT THE BOTTOM OF THE NEXT BOTTLE, YOU HAVE NO RIGHT TO SAY _I'M _THE ONE WASTING THEIR LIFE! I WILL NOT CATER YOU AND YOU DO _NOT_ TELL ME WHAT TO DO!" _her words hung in the air for a split second, her mother's face the epitome of lividity.

Jack's grip almost snapped his staff in two when her mother backhanded her across the face with every ounce of strength she could muster in her drunken state.

Willow's head jerked sharply to the side under the force of the impact and the hit the floor with a low _thud_.

"That'll teach you to back mouth your mother, you ungrateful little bitch." Her mother staggered from her room, grabbing the whiskey bottle Jack had not noticed before and clutching it in her fist. Willow flinched when the door rattled from the force it was slammed with. Jack saw her sit up, though still hunched against the wall, but now her cheek was visible. Though she had only been struck moments ago, her check was already mottled purple and black, except for the red gash across it that slowly seeped blood.

Upon seeing her check, he gritted his teeth so hard, Tooth would never forgive him, and flew to her window. He tapped on it gently and, after a moment, Willow looked over with a dull glance, the previous sparkle in her green-gray eyes long gone. She shifted a moment, before rising to her feet and unlocking the window. He breezed into the room without a sound, at least until he started talking, though only Willow would hear him.

"What was _that_?!" he cried angrily.

"_That_ was my mother. Don't worry about it, I'm fine." her low voice was a dull as her eyes, tears beginning to form.

"Does she do that all the time? Willow, that woman is _beating_ you! Do you have any idea how _wrong_ that is? Report her!" Jack's ranting was met with another few minute of silence, before she finally answered. For the first time, he understood what she escaped from at the pond.

"Yes, I know, but if I report her, I'll end up in foster care and I don't want that. I would rather endure this for three more months than be stuck as another State Ward. After I'm eighteen, I can leave this hellhole." her blank mask wavered when her tears flowed into the gash, salt stinging the raw flesh.

"At least let me clean up you face. It's going to get infected if I don't and, honestly, I don't think you care enough right now to do it yourself. Do you have a first-aid kit in here?" he asked as two rivulets of blood began to run down from the cut. She pointed to the top-left drawer of her battered desk, the only drawer that wasn't secured with a combination padlock. He opened the drawer to see the only thing in it was a good-sized first-aid kit.

He carried the cracked plastic box to her bed where Willow was now seated. He opened the box to find it partially full of various Band-Aids, wraps, gauze and cleaning ointments. The box seemed to have a little bit of everything, which was both good and bad. Good, because Jack had what he needed, but bad by the sad fact that she would need to have these kinds of things in her room.

Pulling out an alcohol pad, he began to clean the blood from her cheek, which was beginning to swell, but the pad quickly became saturated with the crimson liquid. Removing another, he began to clean the actual gash, yet she never even flinched when the burning chemicals touched the ragged wound.

She sat quietly as Jack cleaned the cut on her face. When he went to smooth the bandage across her face, a small sigh of relief escaped her lips.

"What's wrong, did I hurt you?" he asked, jerking his hand back.

"No, actually your hand felt kind of nice, because it's so cold." she whispered. Jack reached up again and stroked her face oh-so-carefully with his thumb. Willow closed her eyes and leaned into his hand, its cold numbing the pain.

He stayed with her through most of the night, until she was nearly delirious, from lack of sleep. Jack slipped out her window, promising he would return and keep an eye on her.

"Sandy!" he called out into the inky night. Not thirty seconds later, the little golden Guardian descended on a shimmering stingray.

"Can you take care of this one? She's had a… rough day." Jack's hand clenched on his staff again as Sandy peered into the window. His eyes widened at the sight of her cheek, images of a fist connecting with her face swirling above his head.

"Yeah, to put it mildly." he murmured.

He watched as Sandy sent a stream of dreamsand into her room, more than Jack had ever seen him place on one person at once. Nodding in satisfaction, he saluted to Jack and disappeared into the night sky.

Jack watched as the overload of dreamsand swirled to life above her head, mostly of scenic landscapes she had no doubt drawn, but also ones of Jack in the tree at the pond and Jack flying her over the forest. Quite a bit of her flying, actually.

Jack smiled just a bit, knowing she could escape in her dreams, too.

**Ugh, that was a long chapter. Don't get used to it, because now I feel like I have carpal-tunnel. I also PROBABLY won't update this fast again, but miracles happen. Occasionally.**

**I always wanted to fly. I would have accepted the offer, too, Willow. When I was little(and sometimes now, even), I wished I was dragons-like wings on my back so I could fly. (I have a drawing floating around my room somewhere. Maybe I'll re-do it and post it on my DA so you guys know what I mean.)**

**Yes, if you do your math, 324 is correct. Since this is eight years after Pitch, and I have Jack aged at 17(as well as Willow, though anyone who was paying attention would know that), that would place him at 324 years old, also assuming that the Pitch thing occurred exactly three hundred years after Jack became a Winter Spirit, which is unlikely, but I think it's less confusing that way. Plus, everybody else uses that, too.**

**Also, regarding her clothes, if you ever decide you don't believe me, email me at silvergoddess666(it's a gmail, it won't let me post the rest. check my beta profile if you have to.) , and I will send you a picture of them, with me holding up a sign that says "I am Luminesrya, not a Mary Sue" that covers my face. As I'm sure you can tell, I've never done that before, or anything.**


	3. Finally Letting Someone In

**Okay, I am genuinely convinced there is something wrong with me, I have now updated three consecutive days in a row, two over three thousand, one over four thousand words. Reviews are fueling me better that coffee at this point, and coffee is like some kind of freaking drug for me. It can be rather frightening at times.**

**But I digress(I love that phrase). Onto reviews!**

**MoonGirl1155- Thank you! It seemed like Jack's personality to do so, I mean he ended up dead to save his sister's life, so it's only logical he would help her, too.**

**TigerLilly1995-I'm glad you think so, but you don't need to rewrite your stories. I promise you, my writing did NOT start out like this, I just never posted the sucky ones online**** And her sleep issues will be revealed, all in due time, my dear, all in due time.**

**Fluffythorne- I am ever so pleased my character's sarcasm amuses you. As for Jack's remark, I'm not sure why I used that word. I simply don't know. Her father will also be explained in due time and I'm glad you like Mia as well. I'm willing to bet you like her more after this chapter*smirks*. For the ice, I thought it only logical that He would have fears of seeing someone on the ice again, especially on **_**that**_** pond. Lastly, you can just love them both.**

**KikaKatTIOI- Mmmh, yes, Jack can be rather shmexah, can't he? It's so cute when he's all protective, I want to cry! Oh man, I am going to have tears from this chapter, is it possible to get feels over your own story?(Sound familiar? I stole that phrase from you, hope you don't mind****)**

**Lokirka- OH MY GOD I LOVE ALL OF THOSE BANDS! If we aren't sisters, we are now, I dub you as thee. Can you send Jack after me now? I feel the need to be rewarded…**

Jack stayed outside Willow's window for what little remained of the night. It was almost three in the morning before he had called Sandy to help Willow sleep, and he was sure she would have to get up early for some reason or another. Karma rode on her heels too much for her not to.

For a while, he could see her mother stumbling through the house with the whisky bottle in her hand, each time taking every ounce of self control he had not to send a carefully positioned icicle through the window.

Eventually, though, she collapsed onto a broken armchair, passed out drunk and snoring like a band saw.

His gaze could never leave Willow's small frame curled on her bed for long. Even from the oak tree, he could see how swollen her cheek was beneath the bandage. He had hoped to see the inflammation go down as she slept, but only seemed to swell more, if anything.

Eventually, the sky began to lighten and the clock on the wall opposite to her bed read six thirty when she began to stir, the last remnants of the golden dreamsand dissipating. He watched as she carefully slid out of bed, her fingers brushing over her cheek, wincing slightly as she did so. She took a change of clothes, stuffing them into her bag before sliding her window open as quietly as she could manage, slipping out into the frigid morning.

Jack followed her as she slipped through the iced-over streets of Burgess, until they came to a twenty four hour gas station. Willow slipped inside, re-emerging a few minutes later in clean jeans and a faded black T-shirt with skulls in top hats and green tribal shamrocks, suggesting an old St. Patrick's Day shirt, beneath her jacket.

After that, she wandered around aimlessly for a while, eventually ending up at the park. She brushed the snow from a bench, before sitting down and pulling her knees to her chest. Her fingers began to probe the cut again, causing her to flinch at the initial contact, but only once. She had brought a handful of snow to her cheek, when Jack drifted down in front of her. She glanced up at him, unsurprised, before her gaze returned to the snow.

"You didn't have to keep following me, you know. You could have come down as soon as I left my house." her voice was a touch on the scratchy side, though that was only to be expected from the night she had. She glanced up at him again. "I knew you wouldn't leave. I didn't have to see you to know you were there."

She was right. Even if he hadn't promised to keep watch, he wouldn't have left anyway. He would never subject her to that monstrous woman again, if he could help it.

"Okay, I'll remember that." He saw where the snow in her hand was both melting and turning her hands a numb shade of red. "Here, let me, your hand must be freezing." he gently nudged her hand away from her face, to replace it with his own. He was right, there was very little difference in the temperature of his hand and hers as he pushed it away. Her hand slid into her pocket as she leaned, ever-so-slightly, into the cool relief of his hand.

"Your hand is freezing, too, maybe you should spend less time out in the snow." she murmured, causing Jack to chuckle.

"This is coming from someone who got up at six thirty for a morning stroll in the ice and wind." Jack pointed out as lightheartedly as he could, though he knew her true goal was to leave her house before her "mother" awoke.

"That may be true, but I'm also wearing shoes as I stroll through that ice and wind. And I didn't have anything else to do until work." she said, gesturing to her knee-length shoes before pointing to Jack's lack of them.

"Alright, fine, you got me. Is there somewhere you were going to go? I noticed you changed your clothes at the gas station, but I don't think anyone at that pond, who didn't know about… last night, would notice or care." She lifted her face from Jack's palm before answering.

"No, probably not, but I have a job at Joe's, you know, the coffee place? Joe or Mia might have noticed." she shrugged.

Assuming her boss' name was Joe, considering the name of the shop, he asked, "Who's Mia?"

"She's one of my regulars. She comes in almost every day during my shift, so, after a while, I ended up getting to know her pretty well. She works at the library."

Jack vaguely recalled Jaime talking about one of the librarians whose name was Mia. "Short, dark-skinned, hair always pulled back with a red band?" he asked, getting a curious look from Willow.

"How do you know her?"

"My friend Jamie volunteers at the library. He made a few comments about one of the librarians, whom he called Red for a while, because he could never remember her name and she always wore a red band around her hair." Jack leaned back against the bench. She almost followed suit, but then looked back at him.

"Wait, you said Jamie volunteers at the library? How old is he, because he has to be at least eighteen to do that." He could hear in her tone that her question wasn't the point of her confusion.

"Jaime just turned twenty one." he answered, knowing already what her next question would be.

"How did you meet him?" Or so he thought.

"I was expecting you to ask how he could see me."

"I remembered you saying something about a Jamie when you were telling me you were a Winter Spirit. He and his friends are the only ones who are not little kids who can see you." she explained.

"Hm, you were paying closer attention that I thought. I met him a little over eight years ago, when he was thirteen. He was the first person to ever believe that I existed and he last person to believe in the rest of the Guardians. It was because of him that we were able to defeat Pitch." He waited for the obvious question, and, this time, was not disappointed.

"Who is Pitch?"

"In a nutshell, he's the Boogeyman, but he almost won. He feeds off of fear, and, with that, was trying to make enough children stop believing in us so he could… basically throw the world into the Dark Ages again." Jack's rough explanation was enough for her to understand who he was, but there was an odd sense of relief across her face when he finished.

Glancing down at her cheap, though operational, watch, she stood up from the bench. "I have work at seven thirty, I should get going. I get off at four." she said, brushing some stray snowflakes from her jeans and sleeves.

She set off towards Joe's, Jack following closely behind her. As she walked, she thought about what Jack had said about keeping an eye on her. Though most people would find that creepy, she was actually glad for his protectiveness of her. She had almost no friends in her life, and was used to being lonely and, in a sense vulnerable. Not necessarily in a physical way, she could defend herself just fine, but in a more emotional way. She had never really had someone to stand up for her when she was bullied for being a freak with a drunk for a mother. It was refreshing to know that she finally had someone who was looking out for her.

The coffee shop was very close now, so she turned to tell Jack he would have to go, but he had disappeared, though she suspected he was very nearby.

The bell on the coffee shop door rang out at her entry, Joe barely glancing up from wiping down the counter. Willow was the only person who would have been there.

"Mornin', Willow. Any particular reason why you're fifteen minutes early?" he asked, giving her a slightly groggy grin.

"No sir, nothing besides I couldn't sleep." she answered. She stepped behind the counter, grabbing her nametag from the plastic coffee canister kept under the counter for employees after hanging her jacket on one of the pegs in the corner.

"Is that so? Well, I hope you can get better- _What in heaven's name happened to your face_?" he exclaimed when he looked up, seeing her face clearly for the first time.

Her mind scrambled to come up with a feasible answer than wouldn't result in CPS getting called. "Uhm, I was attacked by the stray cat in our neighborhood. I had found her kittens, but I didn't know she was nearby." This wasn't _completely_ untrue, as her neighborhood _did_ have a stray that _had_ scratched her before and Joe knew it, but nothing even _close_ to the swollen mess that was her cheek.

"That must have been one hell of a pissed off cat, to have completely mutilated your cheek that way! Maybe you should go home and rest. I don't want to be working you while you could get an infection." The worry in his tone was overrided by his words.

"No, I'm fine, Joe! I got it taken care of, it won't get infected, it's just a little swollen." she said quickly.

Joe gave her a long look. Her cheek was more than a _little_ swollen, half of her face had expanded, but her eyes begged him not to send her away.

"Alright, just this once, but only because you're the only one with a morning shift. If that cut starts bothering you, though, don't you hesitate to say something. Okay?" His words were firm, but his tone was soft and gentle.

"Understood, sir." At her remark, Joe smiled just a bit.

"Got a gash in her face, yet still is polite as ever." he murmured once he was back in his office.

(*)

Willow was stacking Styrofoam cups and filling napkin dispensers, when she heard the chime of the door. She internally groaned in dread of the coming encounter with Mia.

"Morning, Willow!" her chipper voice rang through the shop.

"Morning, Mia." she still didn't turn, but she couldn't keep her back to her for much longer. Might as well get it over with.

"I was thinking, instead of hot chocolate- Oh my god! Sweetie, what on Earth _happened_ to you?" her brows furrowed as concern etched its way across her face.

Avoiding her eyes, Willow told her the same thing she had told Joe.

"A _cat_ did that to you?" she looked at her disbelievingly. "Honey, I hate to break it to you, but I just don't buy that. Cats don't do that." she pointed to Willow's cheek, but the girl remained silent. Mia sighed. "I'm sure you have a good reason for not telling the truth, you don't seem like the type to lie needlessly, but whoever you're protecting doesn't deserve it."

The _I know_ on her face was etched more clearly that if a Sharpie had written it.

"Nothing for me today, dear. I've suddenly lost the taste for coffee this morning." she gave her a look, not of pity, but of… hope? Hope that she could stand up and tell someone the truth. Hope that she would tell whom needed to be told.

The chime of the door echoed in the shop eerily.

(*)

Stepping out into the cold air, Willow began walking away from the shop, Joe having let her off at two instead of four because of her injury. Her cut was burning as if a row of lit matches were pressed against it, though she still hadn't said anything. Joe, however, noticed that her cheek was a much brighter red that it should have been and sent her home. She had barely circled to the back of the building, taking a shortcut to the park that she rarely used because of the rough undergrowth and uneven terrain, when Jack descended in front of her once again.

"What happened to four?" he asked, his tone a touch playful and a touch concerned.

"Joe kicked me out because my cut was turning red." Her tone was a little too casual for his liking, but he didn't say anything. He brushed her hair out of the way, as it hung over her eye and cheek to cover the injury, to see her entire check was inflamed.

He trailed his fingers over it, almost jerking back. The surface of her skin was so hot against his icy hand that it burned the tips of his fingers. He couldn't imagine how it must feel to her. He placed his hand over the gash, trying very hard to ignore the intense fire beneath his palm.

Relief flitted across her face, making up for the burn. "Thank you. You have no idea how nice that feels." she told him. The searing heat beneath his hand was already beginning to fade as his hand numbed the pain. Only a few minutes later, Willow pulled her face from his wintry touch, though it had still been quite warm beneath his hand. She began walking through the rough brush that grew around the knee-height fence behind the line of shops.

Knowing where she was headed, Jack rolled his eyes, following her and stopping her once more.

"Y'know, you can be maddeningly stubborn sometimes. You are aware my ability to fly didn't vanish overnight, right?"

Her eyes didn't hold their usual joking demeanor. "I know, but I don't want the wind blowing against my face. I'd rather walk." Her voice was more introverted than usual, causing a flash of anger to shoot through Jack. What her mother had done had pushed her over the edge. It had broken her in some miniscule way. Jack only hoped he could find some way to fix it.

His feet gently brushed the snow as he followed her on foot. The quiet stretched on through the long minutes as the pair walked in silence. Jack glanced at Willow every few minutes, her eyes never moving from the ground, her arms wrapped tightly around her torso, though he suspected it wasn't from the cold.

Finally reaching the pond, she immediately curled up on her rock, not bothering to brush the snow from it as she pulled her knees to her chin. Her eyes remained downcast as Jack shuffled in the snow, unsure what to do.

"You don't have to stay here, Jack." Her low voice startled him. "It's not like anything will bother me out here, no one comes here."

Had her face not have been cut and swollen, or her tone not have been so flat, he may have even considered her words, but that was not the case. He couldn't leave her in the middle of the woods, as small and vulnerable as she looked, it wasn't who he was.

"I told you I would keep an eye on you, so you're not getting rid of me that easily."

"Jack, I can take care of myself, I'll be fine. Don't waste your time babysitting me." Her eyes still didn't leave the ground, though her half-hearted tone suggested that she didn't really want him to go, but she didn't want him to feel stuck there, either.

"If you can take care of yourself, why do you let her push you around? What she's doing is _wrong_ and you won't even stand up for yourself!" The smallest note of anger slipped into his tone, but he stopped and took a deep breath, quieting his words. "Because of it, you now have a huge cut on your face, which will most likely leave a scar. How did she manage to cut you, anyhow?

"It was probably her wedding ring. The set sits above the band. It wouldn't be the first time her ring has cut me." Her hand unconsciously trailed over her right arm, just beneath her shoulder. Jack gritted his teeth in realization that there was probably another scar there.

"Then why don't you stand up to her? Defend yourself!" he said, exasperated. Her head snapped up, anger of her own flashing in her bi-color eyes.

"You think I haven't tried that?! All it gets me is another punch, twice as hard! It's never worth it!" her voice rose in volume as she ranted, her fists slamming into the boulder she was perched on when she finished. Her head dropped onto her knees and her hands wrapped her legs, light shadows on the sides of her hands from where she had struck the stone, which would probably end up as bruises.

Upon seeing this, Jack backed off a bit, touching his staff on random rocks and trees, causing frost to blossom on then in intricate, fern-like patterns.

"I'm sorry for shouting. Sometimes I let my anger get the best of me." She peered up at him from behind her knees.

"No, you had every right to yell. I shouldn't have gone that far."

"But you're right! I should stand up for myself, I shouldn't be beaten into submission by an over controlling, vindictive mother, but it's easier to be a coward about it. Though it may not help me in the long run, keeping quiet saves me a lot of pain." Her whispered words carried clear as a bell, despair seeping in to her voice.

Jack looked her again, but this time, didn't see the small, defenseless girl he had before. He saw a young woman who answers to no one, except the one person who forces her to through pain. He saw her inner strength and determination to not be written off as a weak little girl.

He also saw her issues with trust because of her… difficult childhood, her lack of control for her anger stemming from years of bottled up hate and resentment towards her mother. He saw the lonely girl who craved to be recognized as something more than a shadow in the background.

"Then maybe it's time you have someone who stands up for you." She looked up to see Jack holding out his hand to her. His eyes were soft and earnest, promising her he would do everything in his power to be there for her.

Hesitantly, she slid off of the boulder, her hand reaching slowly towards his as if she expected it to disappear. She glanced back to his face, her reluctance melting when his eyes told her he would never leave her, and something broke inside her.

Her hand shot out, Jack's eyes widening in surprise as her slim fingers wrapped around his wrist, yanking him forward with much more force than he expected from someone her size. She wrapped her arms around him, clutching the fabric at his back with shaking hands like a lifeline. His arms twined around her small frame.

"Thank you."

**Aww… Okay, I know at least one person will be wondering about Willow's sudden sentimentality, because she met Jack only a few days ago. I think that her actions were caused by the fact that no one has ever truly been there for her, and some kind of mental wall broke for her when Jack basically said he wouldn't abandon her like everyone else did. She craved to have just one person in her life whom she didn't have to be afraid around, who she could open up to. She decided to take the chance to let someone in for once.**

**I hope this deflects any questions from that, but I'm kind of expecting them anyway(you know who you are). I'm going to feed the craving and start on chapter four now, so it might be up in the next couple of days. Don't be too disappointed if it isn't up tomorrow, though, because these fast updated are extremely abnormal for me. **


	4. Freezing Fear Over

**Okay, guys, I have pretty much accepted and come to terms with my unhealthy obsession for this story. It's becoming almost as addicting as coffee, at this point, all because of the reviews. Reviews are a drug for me. FEED IT.**

**And now to those reviews.**

**sassysaw- Why, thank you.**

**KikaKatTIOI- Well, Jack is a very laid-back, go with the flow kind of guy. (Who am I kidding, he's wild and reckless, yet sweet. I thought it to be his personality.) As for Mary and Cody, Mary doesn't really come across as a hugger (though neither does Willow, yet you see how that turned out), and Cody just seems flat-out too shy. They're getting there, though**

**Fluffythorne- The Insanity bit will be revealed in the next few chapters, though it is hinted at here. No, she does not know Pitch, and for the last question, see the footnote of chapter 3.**

**FFC3- Though you told me to just ignore it before, you bring up a good point with the age thing. I reasoned 324 years, because the movie said the Moon hadn't spoken to him in three hundred years, implying it had been exactly three hundred years since he was brought back to life, not three hundred years since he was born. I went with the director and placed him at seventeen, and my story is placed eight years after the movie, logically placing Jack at 324 years old. Does this ease your confusion?**

**Lokirka- Yes, PRIZE ACCEPTED! I am your favorite OTP?! *gasp*…actually, I don't know what OTP means, I've only been posting online a little over six-seven months, and I've seen the abbreviation before, but I could never figure out what it meant. Halp?(before I go sit in the corner to think about what I've done?)**

**MoonGirl1155- Well, here's another one of those updates. I honestly have no idea what's gotten into me, I've NEVER been THIS obsessed with a fic. Y'all should all be proud of me, I'm doing this for you(my lovely reviewers).**

Jack had brought Willow home late into the night, per her request. She was trying to wait out her mother until she fell asleep, so that she could slip inside without repercussions. She entered her bedroom window, the house silent, the sounds of her own steady breathing quickly joining the sounds of the night.

The Winter Spirit was now sitting in the center oak tree, not wanting to stay in the once closest to her window, and he could no longer see the window from the farthest one, leaving him with the one he was currently stationed in. His feet swung aimlessly from the branch as he recollected upon their time at the pond.

_Jack's arms were wrapped around the shaking girl, tears seeping from her eyes .He could almost feel her desperation as she clung to him, feel her craving for someone to be there for her. Someone who wouldn't leave her._

_She stepped back, carefully brushing the tears from her face and flinching as their salt burned her cut._

"_I'm sorry, I don't know what came over me. I don't usually react to things like that." she wrapped her arms back around her torso, her eyes on the snow once again as a slight red tinge spread across her cheeks._

"_Don't apologize. After what happened, most people would have had some kind of mental breakdown. You're stronger that you think you are to be able to endure that." His voice was somber, but his smile was sincere, bringing a weak one to her face. Glancing up at the sun, he said, "I should probably get you home. One less reason for…" he trailed off, anger bubbling in his chest once more._

"_Actually, I would rather just wait her out. Do you mind waiting until tonight, after she's asleep?" her soft voice and hopeful eyes obliterated any notion that Jack would even _consider_ saying no._

"_Okay, we'll stay." he agreed without hesitation, actually a bit relived that he could keep her from her mother's grasp that much longer._

_They spent the hours shuffling aimlessly around, just talking. Their conversation drifted from topic to topic, never lasting long as Willow still hesitated to really open up. It was late into the night, Jack asking her about the private music lessons she took and how she managed them._

"_After a few tryouts, I managed to get a scholarship. Apparently they liked me enough that my payments were waved. Whenever I go, my mother thinks I'm at work." She laughed bitterly. "Then, she doesn't care. More overtime means more money for her liquor."_

_A low breeze blew her hair from her eyes, raising chill bumps on the backs of her hands, the only skin Jack could see._

"_I think it's time I take you home. Your mother should be asleep by now and you're getting cold." He said, quieting the winds._

_She rolled her eyes a bit. "Jack, I spend almost every waking minute I can out here. It's not like the rock is heated or the tree magically blocks the cold. I'm pretty used to it."_

"_That may be true, but infection thrives in a cold environment. At least, that's what I was taught, and I don't think bacteria has changed all that much since the late 1700's." he said._

_At this, Willow agreed to go, her arms wrapping around his neck. He leapt from the ground, but her arms didn't tighten up as much as they usually did. She was beginning to get used to flying._

_Her face didn't hold its usual awe as they silently soared to the trio of oak trees. He set her down in the soft cushion of snow, thanking him and entering through her window, which seemed to be a more used door than her actual door. She had slipped into the void of sleep almost immediately._

Jack had been lounging in the tree for a few hours now, biding his time by creating little statues out of ice in his palm and sending webs of frost crawling over any nearby surface that remained unfrozen.

His attention was pulled from the tiny kangaroo in his palm, thinking it would be a nice little present for Bunny, when he heard Willow cry out quietly in her sleep. He dropped the partially formed statue, instantly sliding from the tree as he drifted down to her window.

Her brows were furrowed and her lips were twisted into a tight grimace. He watched as the golden sand above her slowly stopped its swirling images, the glittering grains morphing into a gently pulsing mass hovering above. A strange, pale blue haze began to drift over it in a thin fog, Willow's breath picking up and hitching.

Jack rapped sharply on the window, causing the sand to shift as the sound penetrated her mind, but she still didn't stir. He knocked on the widow again, harder, while shouting her name, knowing no one would be able to hear him. The blue haze thickened as the sand shifted again, this time faster as she cried out again.

"_Willow!_" His hand hit the window one more time, before her eyes flew open, a sharp gasp escaping her lips as she sat up strait. He tapped the window gently and her torso whipped around, though she visibly relaxed when she realized who it was.

Her hands trembled as she slid the pane up, but Jack didn't enter. "Sorry, I heard you in your sleep. What happened?"

"It's nothing, just a bad dream." she said, not elaborating.

"Are you sure?" His tone was doubtful.

"I'm fine."

He gave her a long look, but didn't say anything as she eased the window back down. He stayed at the window until she curled back up, then returning to the tree.

Leaning back against the broad trunk, he sighed and ran a hand through his white mess of hair.

"For being the Guardian of Fun, there sure has been a lot of tension around here." he murmured, looking up at the silvery disk in the sky, but it remained silent as ever.

Then, he got an idea.

(*)

After slipping through her window, Willow collapsed onto her bed, falling asleep almost as soon as her head hit the pillow.

Colors and images flashed, vibrant hues of green, brown and white whipping by as she sailed over the trees. The blur of the forest would shift from the light of Burgess to wide open seas, changing every few seconds.

The scene shifted before her, and she was sitting in the tree by the pond with Jack on the branch opposite to her like he was when she first sketched him, but the setting was different. Instead of mid afternoon, the moon shone down on his still figure, the light illuminating his face and making his hair shine like silver. Her hands blurred in and out of focus as the lines came together in a matter of seconds, the final image far beyond her true capabilities, looking like a black and white photograph.

His head turned to look at her, but something was different. His eyes were no longer a bright, aquamarine blue, but a soft green that felt so familiar, but she couldn't figure out how. She paper slid from her hands, drifting into oblivion as everything, including Jack melted into oblivion.

Voices echoed through the blackness, becoming louder and clearer. It sounded again right by her ear, but when she whipped around, no one was there.

"_Willow… I've been waiting for you, my love…_" it whispered. Her eyes searched wildly around, until they found a tiny figure standing in the distance. She sprinted towards it, but just when it was beginning to clear, the figure vanished.

Her feet slowed and she spun around, nose to nose with… Jack? No, not quite Jack. His clothes were the same and his skin was still paler than a sheet, but his hair was a fiery ginger and about an inch shorter.

Her eyes widened at the sight of her father's light green eyes, finally realizing why that struck her with such familiarity.

"P-Papa?" her quiet voice broke the stark silence, her voice sounding much louder in it that it was.

"My dear, how you have grown." her father's deep voice tumbled from Jack's lips, a fond smile pulling at their corners.

"Papa, how are you here?" her tone showed the confusion that flitted through her mind. "I thought you were dead." her voice faltered.

His eyes softened in sadness. "I'm so sorry. I didn't want to leave you."

"Why would you want to go to war? More fighting won't solve anything, Papa." Her voice tremored as she spoke.

"I realized that too late." Shadows crept closer and she could feel the nothingness under her feet weakening. Panic gripped her, but not in a way that made her fearful. It made her feel as if she was beginning to teeter on the line of insanity, and she felt like any moment she would go into hysterics.

"I'm so proud of you Willow. I couldn't have imagined someone stronger than you, even when you were young." His voice grew distant as tendrils of darkness seemed to wrap around her ankles and pull her down. His voice faded away and the vague solidity beneath her dropped away, a piercing shriek sounding as the fell.

A series of low thuds resonated from the blackness around her and her falling slowed. Her mother's face flashed from the shadows, her muddy brown eyes glaring at her with burning hatred.

"…never do as you're told…"

"…I don't care…"

"…ungrateful little bitch…"

She screamed and pressed her palms to her ears, trying to block her mother's hateful words. More thuds bounced off of nothing, more urgent this time, accompanied by her name. Wisps of pale blue swirled in the depths of blackness.

One last bang as her name echoed loudly.

Willow's eyes snapped open and she felt a sharp intake of breath hit her lungs as she flew upright. She turned sharply at the sound of a soft tap, but let out her breath when she saw it was only Jack.

She slipped soundlessly out of bed, her hands shaking as she slid the window up.

He stayed where he was, saying, "Sorry, I heard you in your sleep. What happened?" He sounded concerned, but he tried not to let it show too much.

"It's nothing, just a bad dream." she replied, not wanting to recount what she saw.

"Are you sure?" She heard the doubt in his tone.

"I'm fine." His eyes were riddled with doubt, but he didn't say anything as she slid the window back down.

She curled back up on her bed, the shadow only she could see vanishing after a moment, leaving the cold square of light glaring on her wall.

(*)

The steady ticking of her clock was the only sound that cut the silence as the minutes turned into hours. Unable to sleep any longer, she simply stared at the clock, watching the second hand move around and around. Finally, at around six o' clock, she became restless. Pulling a pair of battered combat boots from beneath her bed, knowing the snow would soak through the canvas of her Converse as it had before, she zipped them on and grabbed her bag, before stepping through her window.

She closed the window and jumped a bit when Jack was standing directly behind her, a horrible sense of déjà vu washing over her as her dream played through her mind.

The worried look on his face evaporated quickly, being replaced with a grin, though it was a touch forced.

"I want to show you something." he said, the grin becoming wider and no longer forced.

"What?" she asked, suspicious.

He rolled his eyes at her question. "If I wanted you to know that, I would have told you to begin with."

He gestured for her to come with him, and with a fair amount of reluctance, she looped her arms around his neck. She already had a bad feeling about this.

Wind pushed her hair back as he soared across the sky faster than usual, her grip unconsciously tightening. A smirk pulled at the corner of his lips.

He brought her to the outskirts of Burgess a tall hill looming in the distance, though it rapidly grew nearer. They weren't far from it, when he turned to her, his playful smirk still there.

"Do you trust me?"

Her eyes grew large at the sincerity in his tone, immediately distrusting it.

"What's that supposed to-_JACK!" _She shrieked as he tipped upside down, slipping her waist from his grip as her arms slid over his head.

Her arms flailed as she fell into open air, a blue and white streak appearing in her peripheral vision a split second before she felt something smooth and cold beneath her. Gaining back enough of her senses to, she glanced down to see Jack flying several feet in front of her, tracing her path with the curved end of his staff in ice. He laughed at her startled expression as she slid over the wild twists and curves of the trail.

"_Damn_ you, Frost! Are you _honestly_ trying to get me killed?!" her frantic shouts only brought another round of laughter. "What does this make you the Guardian of, Crackbrained Idiocy?!"

"Close, Fun!"

"You call this _fun_? I knew it, you're crazy!" Adrenaline coursed through her veins as she sped along.

"Maybe that, too, but I'm not going to let you fall, I swear!" The disbelief on her face overrode her panic for a moment.

"You said that before, yet, here you go-whoa!" she shouts stuttered as she flew around a particularly sharp turn. Her eyes squeezed shut.

"Willow. Look at me." One green-gray eye cracked open, his voice less joking as his icy gaze held hers. "I won't let you fall, I promise, but you have to trust me."

Wind whipped through her tangled hair, its ends sending shivers through her when they brushed her cheek.

"Okay." She relaxed as best as she could, tucking her arms against her sides and bringing her feet together.

The ice brought her through dozens of swirling loops and whirls, her small frame picking up speed quickly and easily because of how light she was. Shrieks bubbled past her lips once again as the world spun, but not of terror. Of pure, unbridled ecstasy.

They didn't last for too much longer, though, when she noticed the bottom of the hill was rushing up to meet her.

Her eyes widened as the ice ended, the track directed into the sky. She flew off the end, her small body sailing through the air for a moment, before cold arms wrapped around her waist once more. She clutched his neck with rigid hands, though if her eyes were wide with terror or joy he didn't know.

His question was answered when he looked up at him with a breathless smile, the unmarred areas of her cheeks bright pink from the cold.

"Maybe I'm crazy, too. That was the most fun I've had since… that's the most fun I've had." White steam curled from her mouth as she panted.

"I told you so."

She eyes cut to his face in a mock-glare, but it was short-lived. "I suppose you did." she admitted.

Streaks of pink, orange and gold began weaving through the town's eastern horizon as the sun began its daily ascent. Willow turned her face towards the sun and Jack marveled at the way her eyes reflected the colors of the sky, the bright colors mixing in with the soft greens and grays, creating an extraordinary effect.

Her feet gently touched the snow that blanketed the forest floor, the thin trees providing just enough cover that no one would notice a teenage girl floating down from the sky.

She turned around, the jewel tones in her eyes making them sparkle with excitement.

"I'm not entirely sure if that was the most terrifying or the most fun thing I have ever done." she said, more liveliness in her tone than Jack could remember ever hearing, though he _had_ only known her for three days.

"For you? I think we can agree that it was a little bit of both." he chuckled.

"Maybe just a bit." Glancing around her, she realized that she knew where she was, and the pond wasn't very far off.

She started off through the trees, Jack following behind her, knowing the pond was only a couple of minutes away on foot.

Slipping her bag off of her shoulder, it was a miracle she hadn't lost it, she plopped it down in the boulder. She spun around to face him, her eyes holding a hint of their own mischievous light.

She scraped a handful of snow from the rock, out of Jack's line of vision.

"See, I told you. Just have to tru-" His _I told you so_ lecture was cut off by the snowball colliding with his face. Shaking the snow from his face, he looked up to see Willow, another snowball in her hands. The grinned and ducked behind the tree.

Grinning, Jack's feet left the ground to circle the tree without sound, but quickly became frustrated when he was unable to find her.

"Where did she-"his unfinished question was answered when another snowball hit the back of head, the ice intermingling with his equally white strands of hair.

He looked up to see Willow perched several feet up in the tree, scraping together another snowball from the branches around her.

"How did you get up there?" He knew she could climb trees well, but that quiet?

She smirked and hurled the snowball, though he dodged it easily because he actually saw it. "I can't give away _all_ my secrets." she taunted.

"Oh, really?" he hit the end of his staff against the trunk of the tree, her smirk quickly vanishing when most of the snow above her fell down all at once. Her arms crossed over her head in attempt to deflect the snow, but that still didn't prevent her from losing her footing. Jack's smug grin dropped when she slipped, her fingers catching a branch last second and she dropped to the ground, unhurt.

"C'mon, that was low, even for you." she accused, though she was unfazed by her slip. She eyed the pond for a moment, then glanced back at Jack.

"Are you going to go into panic mode again if I get back on that pond?" she asked.

Jack's demeanor sobered at her question.

"I told you what I thought about the ice. You-"

"Never know, I realize that, but I only weigh ninety five pounds. I highly doubt that is enough to even crack ice that has been thickening for almost a solid month, let alone to the point I fall through. Why are you so OCD about the ice, anyway? You said you were a Winter Spirit, right? An hour ago, you sent me flying through the air on a track of ice. How is that all that different from this?" she waited for him to answer, but the silence lingered.

In truth, he didn't really have any good answers. Not without dredging up his past and explaining why the ice, at least on _this_ particular pond, made him nervous. Still, she was right. The ice track _wasn't_ all that different, and if it was any other pond, he wouldn't have said anything.

He still didn't say anything, either. "You're right, it's not that different." He walked to the edge of the pond. "But, just in case…" he touched his staff to the surface, another layer of ice stretching across the area.

She hopped onto the ice, the only sound another dull _thud_, just like before. Before she did anything, she turned around. "Besides, if the ice _did_ start to crack, I don't really believe that you would let me fall through, anyway."

She was right. He didn't the first time, and he certainly wasn't going to let it happen again.

**And yet another chapter has been given to my adoring fans *bows flamboyantly* Thank you, thank you, you're too kind(though don't let that stop you from reviewing.)**

**I tried to go with a little more lighthearted in this chapter. The last ones were just anxiety and stress, and Jack is the Guardian if Fun, for crying out loud! Though he handles it well, "anxiety and stress" isn't really his forte.**

**And thus, this was born!**

**Well, I've got to go ice down my fingers, or something, now, and it's eleven thirty here. Night, y'all!**


	5. Sparking Hope

***yawns* Oh my, one fifteen, how(not so very) strange! Well, here is yet another chapter you all. My fingers have now acquired a dull, constant ache in the from all of this recent typing, but it's worth it, because I have people who like this story, so I have will to keep posting.**

**Anyways, I have no brain power to say anything else, so on to reviews.**

**Maryboberrie- You ask for more? Here shall it be…**

**chocykitty- Um, thanks? I'm not entirely sure what it is you said, but I'm choosing to take it as something good.**

**sassysaw- I continued writing**** Also, sorry I haven't emailed you back yet. I planned to today, but time slipped away like that bar of soar you tried to grab in the bathtub when you were little, but just couldn't. Um, sorry, I'm a bit delirious right now…**

**Lokirka- Thank you for clearing that up for me *enormity of compliment sinks in* OH MY GOD, I'M YOUR FREAKING OTP. Many thanks are rained down upon you**

**FFC3- Well, officer, I'm glad to have suited your fancy.**

**MoonGirl1155- Thanks. And, yes, I try to write longer chapters(though this one doesn't quite met my norm), because I like to read long chapters and my goal as an author is to write what I look for in a good story. So far, I'm pretty pleased with this particular one…**

**Fluffythorne- Yes, I love sarcasm. I wish it came as a font. Pretty much the whole story would be written in it. You brought up s good point, Jack is spending a tad too much time with her. Thank you for pointing that out, amends were made. And yes, I was happy with the nightmare, but certain aspects of it are needed for the future of the plot, so close attention needed to have been paid to it. Lightheartedness? Check. Questionable sanity… sad, but true. I don't know, but this update certainly isn't helping that case any.**

**psychochirrpingmisstress- Did I spell that right? Anyways, thanks so much. I hate cheesy romance stories that throw cannon characters right into a relationship with an OC/other cannon, with no buildup. I strive to write what I want to see in a story, as mentioned above. Apparently, it's working. Thanks you for considering me an amazing writer, it makes my day to see things like that.**

**KikaKatTIOI- Yes, there had been too much heavy tension, I decided I needed to lighten up he mood of the story some.**

Willow's worn boots squeaked a bit on the smooth ice as she struggled to gain her footing. Every time she teetered, Jack's hand unconsciously tightened on his staff.

"My god, Jack, I have never had this much trouble staying upright. It's quite a bit slicker that I'm used to." Her voice warbled a bit as she jerked to keep from falling.

"Sorry, it's just how it forms."He winced when her feet finally gave way, her petite body skidding on the ice. She shot him a glare, blowing her hair from her eyes with an irritated puff of her lips.

Chuckling, he floated above her.

"C'mon, let me help you." He grabbed her hand and pulled her to her feet. He locked his fingers around her tiny wrists, drifting slowly backwards as he tugged her along. Her eyes stayed on the ice as the weathered leather of her boots still slid erratically.

"Don't look at the ground, you'll never learn that way." She looked up as he instructed, but she couldn't help but glance down every time her feet slid.

"Sorry, it's reflex." she murmured.

"I know, but you'll stop once you get used to it." He started moving faster and her hands gripping his wrists, too, when she almost fell.

"Willow, you have to loosen up. You're not going to do any better if you're stiff as a rock." At his words, the tension began to slowly drain from her hands and he could no longer feel the tendons in her wrist through her thick jacket.

She began to push along herself a bit, and she began steadying almost immediately. She still wobbled around quite a bit, but she was no longer in danger of falling again.

She began picking up speed herself, the strokes growing smoother and smoother. Jack's hands began to loosen from her wrists, and, though she didn't realize it, so did hers. Her fingers trailed away and Jack was a good few feet in front of her before she realized he was no longer keeping her upright.

"Wait, what are you… hey, I think I got it!" Her arms were extended out for balance, but she was now moving, for the most part, easily across the pond. "I couldn't do this, even when the pond _wasn't_ slicker than baby oil!" she called.

"Exactly. You never know until you try." His face rested against his staff, the end of it sunken into the thick quilt of snow.

Her watch emitted a shrill chime and she scrambled to stop. Finally still, she jerked back her sleeve to see its face.

"Oh crap! I was supposed to be at work a half-hour ago!" Her feet began slipping as they had before as she tried to rush to the edge. She didn't get far, though, before her feet left the ice and they began weaving in an intricate pattern through the trees, to the point she swore they would hit one every other second.

In a matter of minutes, she could see the back of the building through the overgrowth behind it. She was jogging the moment her feet touched the ground.

"Thanks, Jack!" she called over her shoulder.

He waited until the bell on the door sounded, before rising above the trees once again.

(*)

"Wait, how old is she?" Jamie's question was immediately followed by another snowball. The wad of ice flew by Jack's ear as one of his own sailed toward the brown-haired adolescent.

"Seventeen. She said that she was turning eighteen in three months, and then she could finally move out." Jack's torrent of snowballs ceased as he dropped to the ground. "She says she just has to hold on for three more months, but, honestly, I don't think she'll last that long."

"Why doesn't she do anything? What that woman is doing to her is wrong on so many levels, it needs a new level!"

"I know, I said pretty much the same thing, but she doesn't want to get stuck in foster care, even if it's only three months. She said she doesn't want to end up as just another State Ward." he sighed, planting the end of his staff in the snow as he leaned against it.

Jamie sighed too, not sure what else to say. "Well, at least you saw her when you did. Taking that kind of hit can seriously mess with someone's mind. I'm impressed she's put up with it as long as she has, and not run away or something."

"You're not the only one. After she got hit, her eyes got this… I don't know, _look_. Like she had just given up on life. I ended up cleaning up her face, because I knew she wouldn't care enough to bother. Then I called Sandy, to help her get some decent sleep." he swatted at the snow with the curved end of his staff, the snow hitting someone's back to effectively begin another snowball fight.

"You know, as introverted as she is, I bet she's actually overjoyed that you're looking out for her. I doubt she'd ever admit it, but I think you are exactly what she needed. Someone who will stick up for her when no one else ever did. Growing up the way she did, or at least the way it sounds like she did, is rough and lonely. It's a shock she turned out as stable as she did." The bluntness of Jamie's words surprised Jack, but they were all true.

"I try to keep her mind off of it as much as I can. You know that huge hill at the edge of town?" He nodded. "Well, I took her there and did what I did to you when you were sledding through town. Sorry about the tooth." He grinned semi-sheepishly as Jamie's eyes widened in realization.

"Wait, you mean… the ice… _you're_ the one who sent me flying through town like some kind of maniac and knocked my tooth out?!" he accused.

"Maybe…"

"Jack!"

"Hey, you had fun!" he offered in defense.

"Yes, until a couch slammed into my face and ripped one of my teeth out of my head!" At that, Jamie scooped up another handful of snow, flinging it at the white haired boy, who dodged it easily.

"Oh, so that's how you're gonna be?"

(*)

"Morning, Joe."Willow's voice was brighter than usual, though guilty because of her tardiness.

"Morning. Any reason you're over a half-hour late, Ms. Bronwyn?" he asked, not sounding particularly annoyed, but not too happy, either.

"Um…" She wracked her brain trying to come up with something believable. It wasn't as if people went on an insane rollercoaster if ice via a Winter Spirit that shouldn't exist on a typical early-morning stroll. "I overslept, sir." Lame, yes, but what else did she do this early?

He gave her a long look, that said _I don't buy that and you know it, but I'm going with it, because this isn't something you usually do._

"Just don't let it happen again." he sighed, knowing that he wouldn't be able to reprimand her, not really. "There hasn't been much of anyone in here, anyway, and Mia hasn't come yet."

"Thank you for letting me know, sir."

He nodded once, disappearing into the back.

Clipping her name tag to her jacket, still chilled from the ice-coaster, then the winds, she slipped her hands into her pocket. Feeling her numbed fingers brush something, she pulled a piece of paper from her pocket, realizing it was the drawing of Jack she had pulled from her sketchbook.

Her fingers traced the soft graphite lines with a feather-light touch, not wanting to smudge them. Pulling out a mechanical pencil, she began darkening some of the lines, the outlines springing from the page. She was just about to start the shadows, when images of her dream began swirling through her head.

Tiny lines changed position from where she cross-hatched instead of shaded, the moon now occupying the upper-right corner of the page. The fine lead was streaking in the depths of his feathery white hair, when the chime of the door sounded.

She glanced up to see Mia approaching the counter, sliding the drawing and pencil into her bag.

"Hello, Mia, how are you this morning?"

"Well, what side of the bed did _you_ wake up on this morning? I haven't seen your eyes shine like that in ages." A smile played o her lips.

"Well, last night was one of my better nights, I'll admit." Her regular's smile shifted to a knowing smirk. "Not like that! I mean, it was just… less stressful than usual. A way to escape life's problems for a little while and ignore reality."

"Mhm, so what _did_ you do?" she asked, the not-so-vague innuendo not eluding her.

"Put simply, I let loose and… essentially played in the ice and snow like a little kid." she admitted.

"So that's what the kids are calling it these days." Willow rolled her eyes.

"You're hopeless."

"So I've been told. I'll take a tall, the usual." Willow slid a foam cup from the stack, filling it to the brim with hazelnut coffee, fresh off the drip.

"Thanks, sweetie. I hope this good mood lasts."Willow's shoulders lifted as she braced her hands on the counter.

"So do I, but I have a pretty good idea that it will."

(*)

The pencil made a soft thump as it dropped back into her bag. Willow had spent most of the day working on the drawing, business being slow.

The last bits of shading had been finished, upon her decision to leave the shading with hatched and cross-hatched lines. Only the strands and tips of his hair held any kind of lines or shading, the light of the moon edged his figure. The tree branches were devoid of any snow or ice, because of her lack of ability to draw sunlight in it correctly, and she felt moonlight to be no exception.

She brushed the deep auburn strands from her face, her cheek barely stinging from where her fingers grazed it. The swelling was almost completely gone and it was no longer an angry red, though she still needed a bandage to keep out infection and it would be scabbed over for weeks.

She sighed and stared out the window, sun beginning to peek through the clouds, lighting up patches of snow a blinding white. Tiny flakes dotted the window, where the glass was cold enough that they didn't melt on contact.

Her watch chimed. One more hour.

She washed the graphite off of her hands, wiping them on a towel as she stared thoughtfully at the snow.

What was it like to be a Spirit, a Guardian? Was it lonely? Did it ever get tiring, creating snow for the world every day? What would it have felt like for no one to know you existed for three hundred years?

The last one she could relate to, though in a more realistic time frame. It was an ever present feeling of loneliness to spend most of your time being noticed by only the person whom hates you the most.

"Three months, Willow. Three months, and you're done being ignored." she murmured.

Three months felt awfully far away.

(*)

"Well, you could take her to the Warren. Bunny's whole thing is Hope, right?" Jamie suggested.

"Yeah, but you can only get to the Warren through the tunnels, and Bunny is hardly about to volunteer them." Jack replied.

"I don't know. I bet if you could stand to talk to him for five minutes without antagonizing him, and explain what's really going on, I bet he'd be a lot more willing that you think." the brown haired boy said.

"You're probably right, but that would be yet another person I'm telling her personal life to. I wasn't entirely comfortable with telling you, but I don't really have anyone else to talk to." Jack twirled his staff through his fingers, freezing the tops of the weeds that had somehow managed to grow through the snow.

"Well, you're going to have to figure out something pretty quick. She sounds pretty well ready to give up on life, after… that."

"I know. Ice can't distract her forever. Maybe I will try to talk to the Kangaroo. I doubt he'll listen, but if it keeps her from trying to kill herself, of something, it's worth a shot." Sprigs of grass stiffened at the staff's icy caress.

"For starters, you can stop calling him the Kangaroo, at least to his face. You know he hates that." he advised.

"I know, that's why I call him that. But go on."

"You have to tell him _something_. It won't be as simple as, "Oh, there's this girl who needs to go to the Warren, but I can't tell you why, because I don't want to put her personal life out there." No, he won't but that for a minute. You don't have to tell him everything, but enough that he understands the gist of the situation." he finished and Jack considered his words.

"I'll give it a try. Thanks for the advice, my surprisingly knowledgeable friend, whom is three hundred years younger than me, yet still wiser."

"Assuming responsibility makes all the difference." He glanced down at his watch, realizing he was due at the library soon.

"I have to go, but the next time we talk, I expect to hear about your trip it the Warren!" His figure bobbed as he jogged to where his bike rested.

"Then it may be a while before we talk." he murmured, leaning against a tree, wondering who will be more difficult to convince, Bunny, or Willow.

(*)

"Wait, you want to take me, where, exactly?" Willow asked, wondering if she had heard him correctly. Wind rustled the dry brush, having not made it very far into the woods, before Jack stopped her to ask her to go to…

"I want to take you to the Easter Bunny's Warren."

"Care to tell me why?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I just thought you could use a break. A real one, not sliding around on ice." he shrugged.

She gave him a long look. "I don't know, it seem a little far-fetched. How far away is it, anyway?"

Of all the questions she could ask… "I don't actually know, we would be getting there through the Tunnels-"

"Tunnels? And now we're sliding through holes in the ground, too? If there was even an idea if a line left, you pretty much just sprinted across it." she said, her indirect _no_, being taken as a _this seems insane, but I'll try it anyways_, even though he knew what she really meant.

"Okay, well, Bunny's going to be showing up anytime now, so you might want to do something with that bag if you ever want to see it again…" Her eyes sprung to his face with an incredulous glare.

"Oh, _hell_ to the no! I'm not about to be dropped through a hole in the ground and get thrown into some smelly old rabbit's den. Not a chance." Her stride lengthened with the pond now in sight.

"And if I told you that you might be a bit too late for that?"

She whirled around, about to give him another loud _no_, but became quickly distracted by the ground in front of her. Or, more specifically, the _absence_ of ground in front of her. Her jaw dropped when an enormous rabbit stepped out of the hole, not fitting the cute-fuzzy Easter Bunny stereotype in the slightest.

"I take it this is the little sheila you were telling about earlier?" he said, the thick Australian accent confusing her further.

"Sheila? My name is Willow, not Sheila. And what do you mean, "talking about earlier"?" she asked, her fingers flicking air quotes.

"You'll see, but you may want to lose that bag if you expect to see it again." The enormous bunny gestured to the bag on her shoulder with one of his huge, furry paws.

"So, you're going to send me through some insane network of tunnels, to some rabbit's den, and I have no say so in the matter?"

"Pretty much."

She glared at Jack, before yanking the bag from her shoulder. She stomped over to her tree and held a clump of weeds flat with her foot as she stuffed it into the, apparently hollow, tree.

"Wait, that tree's hollow? So that's how you climbed it so fast!"

"No, I could have climbed it just as fast from the outside, but there isn't any snow on the inside of the tree to crunch when I step on it and give away where I am." she smirked.

"All right, enough with the chit-chat! Get ready, mate, you're in for the ride of your life." He tapped his foot to the ground twice, and another hole opened up beneath her feet. She let out a shriek, her dream in the forefront of her mind as panic clouded her thoughts. Her voice ricocheted off of the walls of the tunnel as she slid faster that imaginable, much faster than the ice track on the hill.

All of a sudden, a dot of green rushed up to meet her and she hit the ground with a _thump_. Grumbling, she picked herself up from the grass and dirt, swatting away what stuck to her clothes.

Wait, grass and dirt? In the middle of winter? Why was the air so warm?

She glanced to her sides to see gray rock stretching out, grass and small flowers dotting what little she could see. The rest was obscured by the mountain of fur in front of her.

A strangely soft smile was stretched across Bunny's face as he stepped to the side with a sweep of his furry arm.

"Welcome to the Warren"

**Again, I apologize for its shortness, but it took entirely longer to write the last third of this that it should have, because of the typos I kept making, I kept stumbling over my own fingers and messing up, so let that be a lesson to y'all. Don't type in a half- conscious state, YOU WILL NEER FINISH.**

**Okay, I have to sleep now before I pass out on the keyboard and don't end up getting this posted. Night, guys, Lumi out.**


	6. Angel With A Shotgun

**And we have chapter six and counting. There is something horribly wrong with me, but I am loving this too much to pay it any mind. Anyways, I'm going to spare you the mindless gibberish you Earthlings call "small talk", and cut to the chase, because it's two thirty AM and my fingers hurt.**

**Lokirka- Yes, we must love Bunny. If you do not love Bunny, then you are not a true RotG fan. However, I must admit that my favorite Guardian, aside from Jack, obviously, is Sandy. Why? I don't know, I just do.**

**Catdoggasaurous- I think there is less chance of me spelling that right than… I don't know, the person I commented about in the last Author's note. Woot, anther OPT! To answer your first question, a Mary sue is the sole embodiment of perfection in a fictional character. Someone who has no distinguishable flaws and a person and a wide array of talents/skills, paired with either a ridiculously agreeable personality, of a badass who bows to no one. I can't say I know what a lime is, I don't USUALLY read those kinds of stories, but I know what a lemon is and have read my fair share of them(though unintentionally. I forgot to turn on the filter.) I would be glad to help you write, if you go to my profile, you'll see a button at the top that says Beta Profile. Click on that and see if you like it, of which you then accept me as a Bets Reader for you and I help you write/work on stories.**

**MoonGirl1155- Yes, he does have a good excuse for being around her so much but I want this to be as realistic as you can get, despite the impossibilities the cannon characters pose. And yes, fun times cannot last forever, and we see that just a bit at the very end here, but I'm still just teasing y'all. My fast-ness should be getting to where we learn why, pretty soon, though.**

**chocykitty- I got a Luna reference. Um, yay? I take you are some kind of Harry Potter nerd, then…**

**sassysaw- Your wait beith over.**

**Fluffythorne-I did not mean for Joe to come across as a douche bag, just as suspicious. My bad. Yes, I decided you were right, I did need to put Jamie in there more and I felt that it was only logical that Jamie would be the one he confided in. Also, you pointed out the whole illegal thing in chapter one, and I decided it bugged me enough to change it. So there. And, yes, what's a good story without a nice, slightly kinky character? As previously stated, yes, Bunny is amazing, but I don't want her to be a really good fighter, too. I feel that is verging too much on Mary Sue, despite her flaws. I know I can fight, too, and you know it, but I thought it was too much.**

Willow blinked.

There was no way a place like this could exist. Not possible. Yet, here it was, right before her very eyes.

Lush green grass seemed to stretch on for miles, flowers of every hue sprinkled throughout. Pastel shades were painted across what should have been the sky, but was instead the paragon of springtime color. I river of glimmering paint flowed through the land, every shade imaginable streaking through it, never mixing, but weaving in and out of one another in harmony. Tiny flowers lined the stream, puffing out bursts of vibrant color onto the eggs as they… walked by?

"The eggs are walking."

A low rumble resonated through Bunny's chest as he chuckled. "A sight like this, and the only thing ya have to say is "the eggs are walking"? Crikey, you really need to get out more, lass."

The grass beneath her boots made a soft _shh shh_ as she walked slowly forward, drinking in the incredible sight before her, trying to memorize every detail.

More of the tiny eggs skittered around her feet as the rushed forward, her attention drawing to the stone eggs that seemed to stand guard of the shimmering stream. Intricate faces were carved on the stone, most of smiles, but when the stone, too, could move and turn, she saw an equally intricate face of a frown on the opposite side.

"How can this place exist?" The awe-filled wonder in her voice brought a knowing glance between Bunny and Jack. Even the most broken of people couldn't help but look at the brighter side of things here. Too much Hope radiated from everything not to.

"Belief. This place is here because of the belief people have in Hope, that, somehow, everything will be alright. There will always be a new start, a better outlook." The once imposing Easter Bunny now seemed more like the fluffy little creature of the stories than she could have thought possible. Yes, he may have had leather greaves and razor-sharp boomerangs strapped to him, but, here, he looked at if it could be blasphemy to harm a fly.

Willow allowed her fingertips to trail over the soft petals, their touch beneath her skin second to none for such a creamy, velvety feel. Her dark attire held such sharp contrast to the lively landscape, yet, she felt that, for the first time, she truly belonged somewhere. A fast growing part of her wanted to curl up on the silken grass and never leave.

She stooped down and placed her hand on the ground next to the trail of eggs. Most of them simply scurried past, but one egg that looked smaller than the rest stopped, seeming to consider her for a moment, before running onto her outstretched hand.

A soft smile pulled at her lips as she cupped the tiny egg carefully in her palm, carrying it to the flowers and deposited it in front of one. A soft lavender mist encased the egg as the dye settled onto the shell. Most of the eggs had at least two colors on their shells, but she simply picked up the egg and carried it to the stream. Kneeling down beside it, she waited for the right color to flow past her before letting the egg fall into the river with a soft splash. It rolled around in the gently bobbing waves of glitter, before scurrying up the bank, back into her waiting hands.

"An interesting choice." Bunny's voice sounded behind her shoulder. "Most of the little ankle-biters try to put every color on the egg."

"Well, I'm not an… ankle-biter, whatever that is. I like it. It has its simplicity, yet I think it is just as beautiful as the rest." The pastels if the sky shimmered subtly off of the ice-blue glitter that sparsely coated the egg. The rabbit couldn't help but notice the gash on her cheek, and in that moment, grasping the enormity of what Jack had said and why it was so important she come here.

She turned and offered up the tiny egg to Bunny, but he shook his head. "Keep it. Let it be a reminder to you."

"A reminder of what?"

"A reminder that, no matter how small or simple something, or someone, is, its inner beauty is what shines brightest of all. Even when it feels that the odds may not seem in their favor, they still step up to overcome them, because they have the will and the Hope to do so."

She looked down at the egg cradled in her palms, slowly realizing Bunny's true meaning. He was trying to tell her that the egg was a personification of who she truly was. Seemingly small and simple on the outside, but the true beauty of it shining out from the inside.

No matter how difficult life seemed to get, she always mustered the strength to push back and survive the pains it threw at her. She refused to be broken by a vindictive monster. Perhaps dampened, but never quite snuffed out and renewed with a vigor.

Though she had never realized it until now, she _was_ strong.

(*)

Jack leaned against the crook of his staff, the warmth of the air not bothering him as much as it usually did. He watched as Willow bent down to the tide of eggs, a small one finding its way to her hands. She walked with an air of grace as she brought it from place to place, not going for any of the ostentations tones, but two soft pastels that complimented one another's simplicity.

Her dark shape was easily distinguished amongst the sea of bright color, yet, she seemed more at home here than anywhere else she had ever been before. He could almost see that shattered void her mother had created being filled with the light of Hope. Bunny left his side and approached her on silent paws, the bass tones of his voice too low to be heard.

She walked away from the river, still cupping the egg in her hands, but she watched it with a joy rooted from her understanding of its true significance.

When the three of them stood together once more, she turned to them, a quiet light flickering brightly in her eyes, and Jack had a feeling that it would be sticking around for quite a while.

"Thank you so much for bringing me here. I have never felt so at home before. Never felt like I belonged anywhere, but a misfit. Now, I know that is not true, I have to Hope for a better future, or be doomed to live in the shadows." Her soft voice was laced with sincerity as every word left her mouth.

"You're welcome here anytime, lass. You have an eye for the arts, I can feel it." She couldn't help but smile, the enormous, weapon-bearing rabbit, grinning down at her with wide buck teeth. "Off you go, now. Better keep hold of that egg." Her fingers interlocked over the sparkling shell, forming a safe cocoon in her hands. The hole for the Tunnels opened beneath her feet at the tap of Bunny's, but, this time, she wasn't gripped by panic. She closed her eyes and felt the air rushing by her face.

This time, she felt exhilarated.

(*)

The snow around the pond had thickened upon their return, covering the ground with a fresh layer of virgin snow. Still cradling the egg, she walked over to the tree, pushing the weeds and excess snow away with her foot to pull her bag from the hollow. She knew she needed to go back to her house soon, but she didn't want to leave, knowing the spell of whimsy would be broken the moment she set foot inside.

Instead, she pulled out her battered phone, the case cracked and the screen scratched, but it was what she could afford. She wrapped the egg in a thin scarf that had remained in her bag, though she rarely wore it, and placed it inside.

"I would rather not go home just yet, but I was wondering if you would mind if I played some music? It's too quiet and the music let's me not think what's wrong with my life, and take me to a completely different place, even if only for a moment." Her words seemed almost poetic, as though she had considered them before.

"Sure, I like music." The screen lit up and illuminated her face as she scrolled through the music, and hitting one of her favorite playlists. The soft strums of guitar filled the air from the tiny speaker, the sound infusing with the night air in a subtle melody.

_Grew up in a small town  
And when the rain would fall down  
I'd just stare out my window_

_Dreaming of what could be  
And if I'd end up happy  
I would pray _

Jack's thoughts drifted through the years, back to when no one but the other Guardians could see him. He had thought the same thing, dreaming of the day when he would be seen. He had spent so long wondering when he would ever be happy, and not feel so… forgotten.

_Trying hard to reach out  
But when I'd try to speak out__  
Felt like no one could hear me  
_

_Wanted to belong here  
But something felt so wrong here  
So I'd pray  
I could breakaway  
_

He had tried so hard to be known, but no one could ever seem to hear him. He craved to belong somewhere, not be stuck on the outside forever. Talking to the Moon for over three hundred years, yet never any answers. Only recently did he learn it was because they were questions you could answer yourself, should you try hard enough to find those answers.

_I'll spread my wings and I'll learn how to fly  
I'll do what it takes til' I touch the sky__  
And I'll make a wish__  
Take a chance__  
Make a change  
And breakaway  
_

_Out of the darkness and into the sun  
But I won't forget all the ones that I loved  
I'll take a risk  
Take a chance__  
Make a change  
And breakaway  
_

It taken him a painfully long time to figure it out, but, in the end, he was the one who changed things, not Manny. He was the one who took the chance to put everything on the line, and it paid off. He finally managed to step out if the shadow of emptiness he had lived in for so long and… break away.

He understood what she meant about the music taking you someplace else, his mind swirling with memories until the song ended.

A few seconds of silence hung in the air, soon replaced by the smooth tone of cellos.

He listened for a few seconds, recognizing the tune.

"This is it! That song, the one you were singing the day I met you!" he exclaimed.

She gave him a lopsided smirk. "You say that as if it was years ago, when it was actually only four days ago. But, yes, this is the song."

Her head tipped back to rest against the tree, eyes closed. Small movement drew his attention to her fingers where she tapped out the tempo, but he suspected there was something more to it, because her fingers kept interchanging.

"What are you doing?" her eyes opened, causing the motion in her hands to stop.

"What do you mean?"

"Your hands. It looked like you were just following the music, but your fingers kept tapping in different places." he explained.

Realization passed across her face as his question became clear. "Oh, those are the piano keys the noted play. I've picked up it a little bit with my voice teacher, but only with a few songs that we practice with.

By the time she had finished her explanation, the song had changed again.

_I'm an angel with a shotgun_

_Get out your guns, battles begun,__  
Are you a saint, or a sinner?__  
If love's a fight, than I shall die,__  
With my heart on a trigger._

Two of her fingers simply tapped out the pattern, her lips mouthing the lyrics as the song played. Her eyes had closed once more, but not in a way that made her look as if she was falling asleep. More in a way that she was letting her imagination take control of her thoughts and allowing the music to flow through her as inspiration.

_They say before you start a war,__  
You better know what you're fighting for.__  
Well baby, you are all that I adore,__  
If love is what you need, a soldier I will be._

It struck him how her music seemed to correspond so well to their lives. The first was exactly how his life had felt, eight years ago, the second to the introvert within Willow, craving to talk to someone, but willing to open up to no one.

This one, however, was an odd mix between the two, however. He was willing to be there for her whenever she needed him, willing to stand up for her.

But the song made him realize something else.

She was hiding something from her past, something she clearly didn't want to share and did not intentionally reveal. It was no accident she could see Jack, or any of the others, but it wasn't just because she humored childhood fantasies. No, she had seen something and it had done something to her.

What, he didn't know, but she still faced everyday behind the mask of a smile, anyways.

_I'm an angel with a shotgun,__  
Fighting til' the wars won,__  
I don't care if heaven won't take me back.__  
_

_I'll throw away my faith, babe, Just to keep you safe.__  
Don't you know you're everything I have?_

That was it. It fit her perfectly, described her in every way, yet with so few words.

An angel with a shotgun.

Always ready and willing to help anyone who needed it and lend them a hand, yet, strong enough to stand against _almost_ anyone who dared to challenge them. Ready to push back with everything she had until prevailing, regardless of the consequences.

She may have her mysteries about her, that was for certain, but he couldn't expect her to tell him everything. She had a point when saying they _had_ only met a few days ago, but he couldn't explain why he felt so drawn to her. Through the short time he had known her, he trusted her enough to bring her to the Warren, while, granted, she may have needed it on a psychological level and it _had_ seemed to help, he felt as if he may have been rushing her ever so slightly.

Another song was playing, but the steady drumming of her fingers in the air had ceased as she seemed to be drifting to sleep. He had to get her home soon, it was too cold for her to stay here.

"Willow, you have to go home. If you fall asleep out here, you'll freeze." he said, quietly, but firmly. She nodded lazily, but slid from the rock and shouldered her bag after silencing her phone and slipping it inside. Her arms looped around his neck, but her grip was very loose and she struggled to keep her eyes open.

He hesitated a moment, before scooping her legs out from beneath her to pick her up. There was a good chance she would fall asleep as he flew and he didn't want to risk her falling when she wasn't holding on.

"Jack," she mumbled, "put me down, I'm fine."

"Fine until you fall for real. Just don't worry about it, I'll bring you home." he took off despite her weak protests, though they trailed off soon as she drifted.

Low-lying clouds _whooshed_ past them as they made their way through the sky, though the loudest sound was the steady in-and-out of her breathing.

He landed directly outside of her window, instead of behind the trees, the subtle movement of the landing and lack of wind in her face causing her to stir in his arms.

"You didn't have to do that, you know, I could have held on." her sleepy tone made him very muh doubt that.

"I wasn't going to take the chance. Besides, it's a little bit too late to argue now, you're home." he pointed out.

She rolled her eyes and pushed open the window, the warm air dancing lightly across his icy skin. She stepped inside and slid the window almost all the way back down, but left a gap about two inches wide.

Before he could ask, she said, "I would rather the room be a few degrees colder, than have to explain a broken window if you decide to start banging on it again." she explained. She began to walk to the warmth that awaited her at her bed, but she spun back around after a few steps.

"Oh, I almost forgot. You were curious about this, if I remember correctly." She passed a folded square of thick paper through the gap to him, before returning to the inviting warmth of her bed, not bothering to see his reaction.

He went to his perch in the tree before unfolding the page, taking a moment to realize what it was.

The sketch held a quality somewhere in between life-like and cartoonish, by the incredible detail in everything, but the simplistic way of shading it. He touched the branches of the graphite trees with a wintery finger, frost growing onto the page to accent the areas she had left bare, probably wanting to avoid drawing the snow that had given her such issues before.

The drawing now felt complete to him as he re-folded it and slid it into the pocket of his hoodie.

(*)

From the swirling black depths of the shadows, the pale blue mist hovered in wait, its mistress nearer than usual.

She watched in anticipation as the white-haired Guardian brought the human girl to her room, carrying her as a new husband would his spouse. He placed her gently on the ground and she entered the room through the window. The window was left slightly open, giving the boy means to enter if necessary, and she handed him a piece of folded paper before slipping into the bed to let sleep claim her.

The mist roiled with anticipation, but she held it at bay. It was not time yet.

She watched as a golden sand descended upon the girl, a small smile finding her lips when she saw the fantasies flash before her eyes. Exquisite landscapes took shape by the dozen, as well as many images of her flying with the Guardian.

So different, yet so alike. He was wild and free, she was grounded and disciplined, her mother saw to the latter. But both held a curiosity for new things, both would defend those they cared about with their lives. Both craved the companionship of someone who could relate to their problems on a deeper level than what they could simply see. Crushing loneliness, feeling as though they were part of the background, living their lives in a constant state of being ignored.

Yes, similar in so many ways.

"We shall see how similar you are when you are a creature of Insanity."

**Ooh, suspense. Yes, another cliffhanger, s you'll just have to wait until the next few chapters to know what's going on. Sorry, it's how writing works.**

**Also, just for the record, I know I said I owned anything my OC's wear, and I realize it isn't technically part of her clothing, but I can't say I own a gray canvas shoulder bag like Willow's, though I would like to and I saw one once, though I wasn't exactly willing to pay two hundred dollars for it. I don't want it that badly.**

**Welp, I'm tired and my hands hurt, so I'm going to sleep. Night, y'all!**


	7. Grip of Insanity

**This will probably be the last consecutive chapter for a while, unless I get some sort of epitome for the second half of the next chapter. So, after this, updates will PROBABLY be a few days apart from here on out. To reviews.**

**chocykitty- No? Well, you should post the story anyways**** Let me know and I'll read it. Hm, that's a good song idea. I STEAL.**

**sassysaw- But sleep=no update. This is a perfect example, though this is a bit earlier/shorter than usual, because I have school tomorrow.**

**MoonGirl1155-Yes, crazy lady does. We don't find out who she if for a while, but here's a bit more on her. And, yes, I'm glad you like my taste in music.**

**PCM- That is your nickname(you, with the pony avatar. Your screenname is complicated.) Thanks, try not to use the same descriptive verbs together, so I have to get creative sometimes. Glad it's working**

**Lokirka- Oh, my… Preach it, sister, preach it. The Cab rocks. I'm glad you caught on before ever reading the chapter. (::) cookie**

The rubber soles of her boots make loud slapping noises against the floor as she ran, hair streaming behind her. Her breath heave and her heart pounded as she fled. What it was she was running from, however, she didn't know.

Inky blackness pressed against her as the silence screamed in her ears. Brief flashes of pale blue crept into her peripheral vision, but she never looked to see what was, only speeding up.

She couldn't run forever, though and, eventually, she stumbled and fell. Her hands shot out to catch herself and the force of the impact against the nothingness brought a dull sting to her palms. She flipped over to see wisps of a cold blue mist curled ominously as it drew nearer, the tendrils causing panic to rise up in her as it swirled around her.

It seemed to invade her mind as the babbled incessantly. She screamed into the darkness in a fit of hysterics as the essence of insanity seemed to take over her mind.

"He won't abandon me, he's different. I can't be alone again! No, Mother, leave me alone!" Her voice echoed loudly, but she couldn't hear it. Her eyes were glazed over and the ghostly blue swirled through the greens and grays of her eyes, too, feeding her visions of her father, mother and Jack. She teetered on the line of insanity as her father and Jack faded away slowly, leaving her alone with her mother. Words of venom spit from her mouth and, no matter how hard her hands pressed against her ears, no matter how loud she shouted, every acid word rang clearly in her head.

In addition, another voice whispered from the shadows, an unfamiliar one.

"You should listen to your mother, my dear. After all, mother knows best…"

"Who are you?! What do you _want_ from me?!" she shouted over her mother.

"Ah, ah, careful dear. It is a very easy thing to let Insanity poison your mind. It leaves you unimaginably susceptible to the grip of hysteria." The voice's honey tone sent chills through her body, knowing it wasn't good.

She ripped from the grasp of the mist, trying to run, only to fall from an invisible edge. More panic welled within her the farther she fell, as if she could sense the bottom approaching.

At least it would be quiet.

(*)

Willow jolted awake, certain the impending doom of hitting the bottom had only been narrowly escaped. Breath heaved in and out as she caught her bearings and examined her surroundings.

The thin film of sweat coating her skin caused her hair and clothes to stick to her. She waited for Jack's shadow to cove the light of the moon through her window, but it never did. He must now have heard her.

She slipped out of bed, the chill of the floor seeping into her bare feet. She gathered up some clean clothes and slipped out of her room, wanting to shower and rid herself of the sweat and memory of the dream.

The door clicked with almost no sound, her regular treatments of WD-40 saw to that. The floor was littered with piles of garbage and smashed and empty liquor bottles. The reek of vomit infected the air with a deathly stench, having never been cleaned after the intake of too much alcohol from her mother.

The chainsaw snoring verified that she was, once again, passed out drunk, and should not hear the water running. She wouldn't wake up if World War III broke out around the house during a hurricane.

She shut the cracked bathroom door, clearing the counter of its garbage with a sweep of her arm. Peeling the stiff with sweat clothing from her body, she turned on the hot water and stepped inside, allowing the water to roll over her skin. She closed her eyes and allowed the pounding heat rush over her face, ignoring the burn of her cheek at the contact of the almost scalding water.

She scrubbed at her skin with enough force for one to thing she was trying to wash away the memory. Soap ran from her hair and body, the generic scents wafting into the room in the wisps of steam that escaped the top.

She rested her head against the cool tile, streams of water trailing off the ends of her hair and down her back. Bubbles welled around her feet before flowing down the drain. She twisted the knob and the water drizzled down until it was only a slow-dripping stream from the nozzle.

The towel skimmed across her and she dressed quickly. She rubbed as much water from her hair as she could, the rest leaving it in thick, damp strands. The stench of the house rushed to meet her the moment she left the bathroom, chill settling across her shoulder at the dampness of her hair.

The smell cut off when the door to her room closed once more, though she shivered at the lower temperature. She slid her arms into the thick sleeves of her jacket to ward off the cold, a familiar shadow covering her window. She turned to the white haired boy peering curiously into her window.

"I heard something in your house, but you weren't here when I checked before." his voice carried easily through the gap in the window.

"I was in the shower, so that was probably the water running. I can only ever shower at night, unless I want to get beaten while both wet and… exposed." she trailed off awkwardly, realizing where her statement was going a few seconds too late.

Jack suppressed a smirk at her blush, but his amusement did not last long from the weight of what she was talking about.

She sat down on her bed, bringing her knees to her chin to hold in heat, the cold beginning to get to her.

Her wet hair lay across her back and shoulders, moonlight reflecting off of the water-shiny waves. Jack drew back from the bottom of the window at her tremors, instead hovering at its top.

"Is your curiosity now sated?" Her sudden question caused his eyebrows to furrow. "The drawing." she clarified.

At the mention of it, he withdrew the sheet from the pocket of his hoodie. "Yes, it was really good, but I thought it was missing something." He unfolded the paper and held it to the glass for her to see.

Tiny crystals of frost dotted the branches where she had left the bare, accenting the drawing perfectly. Her head tilted to the side as she observed his work with a critical eye.

"It's too thick here, and here." she pointed. "It could have trailed down a bit more here, too."

He chuckled and re-folded the drawing, tucking it back into his pocket. "Sorry, I'm not an artist, I'm just the Winter guy. That's your area of expertise."

"Then you should have left the details to the expert." she smirked.

"Okay, fine, when you can put ice on your own drawings, and carry it around without it melting, I will." She rolled her eyes in response.

She was quiet for a few minutes as she considered what he said, until something occurred to her.

"Jack, how did you become a Guardian?"

He looked startled at her question. Then again, it certainly wasn't the response he expected from her, but she was full of surprises.

"I don't mean to pry, but what you said, about being able to put the frost on the drawings myself, it made me wonder how _you_ ended up being able to." she explained.

He sighed, running a hand through his hair. "Okay, well, um… a little over three hundred years ago, I lived here in Burgess, and I had a family. One day, I went skating with my little sister. I didn't know it at the time, but the ice had thinned out and, before I knew it, she was standing on a spider web of cracks and they were spreading fast. I tried to keep her mind off of it, act like we were playing a game. When she got close enough, I managed to hook her around the waist with, what was at the time, my staff, but it was just a stick then. I pulled her off of the broken ice, and I thought we were fine." His pale eyes dropped. "The last thing I saw was her smile, before the cracks spread and I fell through the ice. After that, I woke up and saw the moon, not remembering anything about my past life for a really long time."

She was quiet for a few minutes, until something clicked in her mind. "Is that why you get so edgy when I skate? Because you don't… oh my god, that's the pond, isn't it?"

He nodded at the sudden question and everything fell into place in her mind. She didn't ask any more questions, she simply leaned against the wall.

His shadow slipped from the light, followed by a small movement from the shadows. Her head jerked, a spark of fear at what she thought she saw.

She was too late, though, because it was gone.

(*)

Tiny trails of golden dreamsand flowed from the cloud of it, upon which the small Dream Guardian sent out for his nightly duties.

Lately, Sandy had felt something off with some of the dreamsand over Burgess. He shook his head. That town was a magnet for trouble.

He noticed in particularly with the girl Jack had brought him to. Something was interfering with her dreams. Not altering them into nightmares, as Pitch had, but suppressing them, using her dreams to instill doubt and panic. But not fear. Very little fear was present, but they seemed to be on the verge of complete hysteria inside of their own minds.

It was not very strong, so the little golden Guardian had yet to alert North, or any of the others, but it was growing stronger and he knew something had to be done soon.

The clouds of gold settled into the homes as he passed the town.

He needed to tell someone soon, before it became an issue.

(*)

"Slow down, Sandy! Pictures difficult to understand when moving so fast!" The thick Russian accent brought a more reasonable pace to the images above Sandy's head.

"Okay, something wrong with sand… someone is… covering? No, changing dreams, making children… nervous?" The peaks of Sandy's hair bobbed furiously in confirmation.

"Is not Pitch, no?"

Sandy shook his head, pictograms explaining it was panic, not fear, the children were experiencing.

"Who is girl?" he asked, seeing an older girl's face appear multiple times. Images of her dreamsand being tampered with more than the others came to life.

"So this girl is target? Does Jack know?" Sandy shook his head.

"Does this tampering of the dreams pose a threat?" North's speech became more official, resulting also in more understandable, as he grew more serious. Another head shake, but the images displayed that Pitch hadn't, either, at first, but their ignorance was almost their downfall.

"We must alert the others."

(*)

Jack was working on another kangaroo sculpture, when the streaks of light wove across the sky.

"Oh, you must be joking." he muttered, allowing the state to fall to the ground once most as he leapt into the night, winds whistling to propel him forward.

City light blurred beneath him faster and faster as he picked up speed. Landscaped changed from streaks of green pine forests to vast expanses of snow, sometime a mix of the two, as he made his way to the North Pole. The colorful lights across the sky became thicker and brighter as he neared it, knowing the others were bound to be close behind.

Flashes of varying shades of blue marked the passing of the ocean, as whitecaps of freezing water crashed in the wake of his winds. The frozen expanse of the North Pole became a white sliver on the horizon as Jack neared it.

The lights streamed a shining beacon from the top of a building straight out of Candyland. Yetis paced the building, more alert that usual from wherever reason the lights had been activated for.

Two immediately blocked Jack's path when he came up, but stepped aside when they recognized him. Brisk air whirled through the workshop at his arrival, North, Sandy and Bunny already there.

Bunny he expected, because he traveled with the Tunnels, but sandy surprised him. He usually arrived before Tooth, whom was usually the last to show.

They looked as uneasy a he felt, unsure why they would have been called together. A few minutes later, Tooth flitted in through a window, her mouth moving faster that her wings as she instructed her little Tooth Fairies. One, however, had its attention drawn elsewhere.

"Baby Tooth!" The tiny fairy squeaked, and buzzed over to his shoulder, perching there firmly.

"I am sure you are all wondering why I have called you here." North's deep voice cut the murmurs of the others and the steady stream of unintelligible words from Tooth.

"A reasonable assumption to make." Jack commented, earning a round of glare from the others.

"Sandy alerted me that someone has been tampering with the dreamsand."

Murmurs rose once again, immediately assuming Pitch, but they were quickly silenced.

"Before we jump to conclusions, Sandy does not think Pitch is responsible. He says the dreams are not being changed, but suppressed. Whatever it is, is using the dreams against them, planting ideas of panic and doubt, not fear." North's voice was much more formal that his usual discombobulated speech, meaning the situation was serious. North never spoke properly, unless he was all business.

"I know this is the obvious question, but by what?" Bunny asked, the Australian's accent sharply contrasting the Russian.

"That's what we have to find out. The only thing we know so far, is where it is the strongest." he replied.

Jack cringed and closed his eyes, knowing the answer to his question before he even asked it. "Where."

North shot him a look, answering, "Burgess."

Bunny did the rabbit's equivalent of a facepalm. "You've got to be bloody kidding me! Do you go looking for trouble, or something?" he accused, giving Jack a characteristically irritated look.

"No, I don't even know what this is about!" he held up his hands in defense.

"None of us do, Jack. That's why we're here." Tooth said, shooting Bunny a glance from his hasty accusation.

"Jack, whatever this is seems to be targeting one person in particular." North told him warily.

"Don't tell me."

Willow's face appeared in the sand over Sandy's head,

"Wait, it's going after the little sheila?" The Easter Bunny's eyes widened upon recognizing her, too. "Why would it want her?"

"Bunny, think about it. North said whatever this is wants to spread panic and doubt. You know why I asked you to bring her to the Warren. It's probably targeting her, because it thinks her mind is vulnerable." Jack told him.

"Well, we can't just let this thing get to her!"

"We won't." North's voice rumbled, cutting into their conversation. "We have to keep watch of the girl. According to Sandy, Jack has been keeping an eye on her anyways."

"Then why hasn't he figured this out yet?" Bunny asked.

"I can't see her dreams and it's not like I can see this outside of them." He stopped and considered his words, before restating. "Wait, no, there was this weird, I don't know, pale blue fog crawling over her dreamsand the other night. Is that what you were talking about, Sandy?"

The little Guardian shrugged, images saying that he didn't know what it was, just that it was something.

"Well, it is the best lead we have. Bunny, you and Jack take turns watching. Tooth and Sandy have bust schedule, but you two can guard her."

"Now wait just a minute, mate, I'm just as worried about the girl as the next Guardian, but my eggs-"

"Can paint themselves, and you know it. Perhaps less interestingly, but can all the same. The safety of the girl is the priority." North told him firmly.

Bunny wanted to argue, but couldn't, because he knew he was right.

"Wake the girl if this blue fog returns, she does not need to be subjected to this." Jack frowned at his command.

"Now, wait a second. We can't wake her up every time this happens! She has to sleep at some point." he said, but North did not relent.

"We cannot risk this threat taking hold of her. Wake her every few minutes if you have to, but she cannot fall prey to this." he said, not backing down.

Jack was not happy, but, ultimately, North had the final say-so when it came to matters with the Guardians.

But he was right about one thing. This thing was not going to pull her into its trap.

(*)

Willow was huddled in a ball on her bed, eyes darting around nervously. She knew something was there, but every time she looked, it was gone.

But it was there.

Memories of her past spiraled through her head, horrifying images of those little dolls lurking everywhere. Most of them had resembled her father after he had been killed in Afghanistan, taking the form of, what resembled, poppets from the Wiccan culture.

They had stopped appearing years ago, and she had thought that was the end of it. Why were they coming back now?

Her hand shook as she reached for her bedside lamp, fumbling to turn on the light. The soft yellow glow filled the room, the shadows brightening and the panic dampening in her chest.

She scooted hesitantly off of her bed, going to her window and slipping out into the frigid night in an attempt to escape the hallucinations.

She expected Jack to be there almost immediately, but he was nowhere to be seen.

''Jack?" she whispered loudly, but she was met with no answer.

He wasn't in the oak tree that he usually sat in, and the doubt began slipping into her mind once again.

_Did he leave me? No, he wouldn't, he promised. But then, where is he?_

She shook her head, trying to clear her thoughts. Jack wouldn't leave her. he was a Guardian, he probably had something important to do.

Her boots crunched the snow, steering her to the park, though she didn't realize it until she was almost halfway there. She looked into the sky to see the faint trails of fading Northern Lights.

_That's funny, you usually can't see the Lights this far in the south _she thought.

Shadows cast by the bare trees raked across the snow with their spindly black arms, an intricate network of lines tracing the snow.

They seemed to stretch towards her as she walked, trying to grab her with fingers of darkness. but they couldn't be, that was ridiculous.

Right?

**And that's it for now, another cliffhanger. Also, I have a Tangled reference in there.**

**Sorry to cut it short(and for the shorter chapter), but I have to go, before I am grounded for still being on the computer.**

**Night, y'all.**


	8. A Shivering Discovery

**And she's back! This was a bit longer that what I would have liked, but my mom just got her house, and there's been lots of appointments with the realtor, and summer school is almost out, so there's been a lot of last minute bustling with that. BUT, we closed a few days ago and just have inspection to get out of the way, and school ends tomorrow, so I wanted to post to celebrate. Plus this has been open on my desktop for a week now as I typed it little by little and I was sick of it always being the same chapter.**

**So, here it is! And now to the storm of reviews I got as new people discovered this and decided to comment on every chapter(which, I'm not about to complain, but you know who you are****)**

**sassysaw- If you like that one's cliffhanger, you'll love this one.**

**KikaKatTIOI- Yes, you were… until you said role instead if roll. Being the grammar freak I am, I had to comment on that.(Yes, I know there are errors in my own chapters, probably this one, too, but I type incredibly fast for a fifteen year old and don't always catch them when editing. I also don't fix them, usually, because I like to compare the first and lat chapters for mistakes to see if I improved any.)**

**cherriepudding- Thank you so much, I really do try! What I try to do is write what I look for in a good story, and apparently it's working. If you want help, go to my Beta Profile and see if you like it. I'm always willing to help, just ask sassysaw up there!(hey girl!)**

**Lokirka- No, I didn't want this to be another story where Pitch comes back, I find that way too overused. The antagonist in this story is going to be an OC, but it's going to be a while before much is explained of her, besides the little ghost poppets. I want the suspense to explode like C4 when I do the big reveal on her, I don't even want to spill her name for a while. Sorry, I promise everything will be explained in due time.**

**Fluffythorne- Yes, Bunny is an awesome character. I am trying to put him in where I can, but not too much. I'm also trying to push his and Jack's relationship along(NOT like that. I have no quarrel with slash pairings, I'm a Dick Grayson, Conner Kent shipper*blame foREVer Nightwing*, but the whole Jackrabbit just seems wrong to me. Sorry JR fans, but I just can't do it.), and I think after Jack and he found Willow in the woods, they hold more respect for each other. Her mother is there because, yes, she fears her. He mother is the only actually, physical person whom she is afraid of, and her father will be explained later. And the fact Willow can see then is a direct effect of… things with the antagonist that will also be explained later.**

**MoonGirl1155- Why thank you, I rather like my taste in music as well**** Questions of Willow's well-being will be partially answered in this chapter, but I don't want a flood of questions as to what's up with her, because you're simply going to have to wait, and that goes for everyone*mock-stern look that no one buys***

**Fellowship of Avengers- Nice avatar, by the way. Wow, I wake up and see a torrent of emails on my phone from all of your reviews. Thank you for the consideration, I'm glad you took the time to review every. Single. Chapter. Well, here's another one!**

Wind ruffled through the snowy strands of Jack's hair as he flew, pushing as fast as he could. He knew Bunny would be there when he arrived, but it made him uneasy all the same. It had been nighttime when he had been called, when she was most susceptible to… whatever it was that was after her.

The glint of Burgess' lights twinkled on the horizon as he neared the town. Just a few more minutes, and he would know if she was safe.

Unfortunately, quite a lot can happen in a few minutes.

The trees rushed up to meet him as he landed in her backyard, glancing around for Bunny.

"Here, mate." He was studying the snow a few yards from her window.

His paid no attention to what the rabbit was doing, instead going to her window and peered anxiously inside.

"She's not in there. Do ya really think I'd be standing here if she was?" Agitation bubbled within Jack at his rhetoric.

"But where would she be? We can't just- _what is so interesting about the ground?_" he hissed in exasperation.

"Tracks." He gestured to the ground with a furry hand.

Sure enough, there were light indentations in the snow, still slightly visible beneath the gently falling snow. Heading in a familiar direction.

"The park."

(*)

Willow stumbled around blindly, her toe seeming to catch tree roots that hadn't been there a split second ago. She couldn't remember the last time she had been so clumsy. Of course, it wasn't as if she was too keen on recollecting her moments of oafishness at this very moment.

She was too busy trying to bat away the voices that screamed at her so loud, there was no way they could simply be in her head.

"Get away from me! What makes you think I believe you! Argh, get _out!"_ Her shrill voice pierced the air, shouting back at voiced no one else could hear. Her fingers clawed at her ears, trying to block out the sound, even though she was only blocking it in.

The elusive woman's laughter sounded from the shadows of her mind, the sound only further taunting the fact that Willow could not escape her.

"Oh, my dear, I'm not going anywhere. This is just the little push you needed! You've walked the line of sanity for so long from your mother's abuse, though I must admit, you're rather talented in hiding it. But now, all you need is that little nudge, before you go over the edge!"

"Who the hell do you think you are? What do you _want_?" Loud curses bounced off of the trees as she stumbled once more, before finally falling to the ground. Unable to pull herself to her feet, she wrapped her arms around her legs squeezing them tightly, violent tremors wracking her body as Insanity poisoned her mind from the inside out.

"Get _out_ of my head!" she screamed once more.

"Oh, darling, don't you understand? You belong to _me_ now." The voice chuckled and spots of black and pale blue swam in her vision as the world darkened, snow biting her flesh as she collapsed.

(*)

The air cut around Bunny's body with every powerful leap, the muscles in his hind legs coiling with the tension of a spring before its release.

Jack flew overhead as they made their way to the park. Though the Tunnels would have been faster, he chose not to take them so he could follow the girl's scent. The tracks may have pointed towards the park, but that was by no means a guarantee. He could only hope they made it in time.

"Hang in there, girl." he whispered. "We're coming."

(*)

Bunny's gray form moved steadily on the ground as Jack soared above. The Pooka hadn't changed direction yet, so the likelihood of her being in the woods increased every minute. Moonlight shone off of the snow with a cold, unforgiving glare, as if to say _You're on your own_.

His altitude dropped when trees began flitting past, shadows consuming the snow like spilled ink.

"She must have stayed on the same path, her scent never shifted, though it got pretty stale from the snow covering it up." The Aussie accent sounded behind him, snow giving way quietly beneath his large paws.

"Okay, do you know where she is now?" Jack asked.

"Not anymore. She's been through here so many times, her scent is everywhere."

Jack sighed in frustration. "Okay, spread out. She had to be here somewhere." Bunny nodded and lunged into one direction. Leaping up, he went in the other.

He traveled through the trees, jumping lithely from one branch to another, not wanting to fly from the chance he missed her, the dark of her clothes apt to blend into the shadows near seamlessly.

He was a bit conflicted about finding her. On one hand, he would be relieved to know she was safe, but on the other, if they found her, she had spend who knows how many hours in the middle of the forest, alone, with the general temperature at below freezing. Such cold could easily prove fatal for someone as small as her.

Aquamarine eyes scanned the ground, but they saw nothing but shadows and snow. He was nearing the pond, hoping he would find her there, hoping that she would be, if nothing else, alive.

He almost missed it.

In the stark monotone of the black and white landscape, a flash of color caught his eye. He glanced over to see the ends of her deep auburn waves, glinting like dull copper in the light. His footing almost slipped from the branch at the sharpness of his sudden turn.

Jack dropped to the ground where she lay in the shadows, her hair strewn over her face. He knelt down and brushed the strands from her face, ensuring there was no other injury to her face.

He jerked his hand back and shifted away from her with a sharp intake of breath. There was only the angry scab on her cheek, but Willow's skin held almost no warmth whatsoever beneath his icy touch. Her skin was usually the shade of milk with a generous splash of coffee in it, but it was now a pallid, sickly gray, and once rosy lips were now blue.

He stood and backed a few feet away, fearful his body temperature, or lack of it, would lower hers even further. He raised his staff and shot a burst of ice into the air, the bolt shattering in the air in a spectacular explosion of white. It hovered above the treeline for a moment, before floating gently to the ground to signal Bunny.

Of all nights for this to happen, it just so happened to be when he left? No, he refused to believe it was just happenstance. Whoever it was had waited until he was gone.

Snow quietly gave way upon Bunny's arrival.

"What is…" His emerald eyes landed upon the girl and he trailed off, not needing to say anything else.

"Come on, we have to move her. At this point, she probably has hypothermia." Jack said, his hand holding his staff with a tense grip.

"Why haven't you gotten her out of the snow then?!"

"Because I'm afraid to even be close to her? Bunny, she's as cold as I am!" he hissed, but too much worry was in his eyes for Bunny to be even offended. "Please, just, get her out of the snow. Your fur should be able to keep her warm."

Bunny slid his furry arms around the girl's tiny frame. Jack was right, she was freezing. It was a miracle she hadn't…

"Let's get her to the Shop. The others may be able to do something." He thumped the ice twice and the ground dropped away as they slipped into the hole. The girl shook in Bunny's furry grip, her chest barely moving, but enough to indicate that she was alive. Barely, but alive.

The lights of the North Pole rushed up to meet them and Bunny's feet slid expertly as he landed neatly on his feet. The yetis back away from the entrance to allow them inside, quieting at the sight of a small human girl wrapped in Bunny's arms, her face an unnatural gray.

Low murmurs from the others also cut off when they burst into the room.

"Bunny, what's… is that her? Oh dear, she's freezing!" Tooth's soprano voice chirruped. Her wings were a blur of color, fluttering anxiously as he set her in the plush chair beside the fireplace. She still shook violently beneath his touch. One of the yetis threw a fur lined quilt over her tremoring frame, before bustling on.

"Where was she?" North asked, peering down at the girl. She didn't seem like much to be a target for this unseen foe. His eyes focused on the angry scab on her face, but now was not a good time to ask.

"I found her in the woods in Burgess. She was just lying in the snow, but her hair was strewn all over her face, as if she'd fallen. I barely touched her face to move her hair, but her skin was as cold as mine. After that, I was afraid to even be near her, so I called Bunny to get her out of the snow." Jack's explanation was brief and rushed, but it got the point across. She had lain in the snow for who-knows-how-many hours, and she seemed to have been running from something.

North, Sandy and Bunny dispersed, but Tooth lingered a moment longer. Her wings cut the air as she hovered closer. Something about how vulnerable the girl looked stirred a long-repressed maternal instinct within her, and she felt the urge to be near her. In an indirect way, she _did_ remember the girl.

"She's a fighter." Tooth murmured to the white haired boy who worried the smooth wood of his staff.

"I know. I've seen some of the things she has to live with." he said, memories of her mother striking her bubbled to the surface.

"No, Jack, I mean she is a fighter, literally. About six of her baby teeth didn't fall out by themselves, they were knocked out in fights when she was young. She refused to let anyone put her down, and would pick fights with anyone who tried. She could dodge pretty well, but when it came to hitting them back, she never seemed to be able to get the upper hand. She was very good at not getting hit, but she didn't know how to fight back. Usually, she either lost, or the other person got tired of missing her and gave up." she explained. Baby Tooth zipped down and landed on the blanket covering her shoulder, prodding her face gently with a tiny hand, and pulling back at the coldness of her flesh.

"How do know all of that?" Jack asked skeptically.

"After I got the third cracked tooth, I started having my fairies keep an eye on her when they were in the area. It worried me a bit that so many of her teeth were being knocked out, instead of falling out like they're supposed to. I worried less when I realized she can handle herself just fine. She may not fight back, but she's a fighter all the same." Tooth smiled fondly down at Willow, but it was tinged with sadness at the gash on her cheek. That was something else, she wouldn't slip up like that. She usually didn't know much about people outside of the condition of their teeth, though, all things considered, hers were pretty good, given the circumstanced in which they were removed. But there was _something _different about her.

For as long as she could remember, the fairies had never taken her teeth from beneath her pillow. They were always on the table beside her bed, and rarely in the same place twice. She had always assumed it was her father who took her teeth, leaving the shiny round coin in its place beside her bed, not the Tooth Fairies.

Yet, she could see them.

At least, she could see Jack and Bunny, but Tooth was certain she would be able to see the others and herself, as well.

The question was, how?

(*)

Jack's alabaster hands would twitch whenever Willow moved, and he was unable to sit still, constantly moving. Firelight danced off of the wild tangle of knots and snarls in a disjointed way, the uneven gleam reflecting the difficulties of her night. Her skin was still much too pale, only coloring with the barest hint of rose, but she no longer held the ashen pallor.

Hesitantly, he reached out his hand and lightly brushed her unblemished check with his fingertips. Though nowhere near the temperature it should be, he was relieved to discover a bit of warmth to them. She was no longer wracked with violent tremors, but she still shook every few minutes. Steam curled off of the mug of warm milk a yeti had left for her when she woke.

If she woke. No one said it out loud, but it still loomed in air ominously. She had spent several hours lying in the snow, in the middle of the night, with temperatures below freezing. It was altogether too real a possibility that the cold was simply too much for someone as small as her.

She shuddered lightly again and Jack pulled his hand away and stepped back, realizing it was probably his own freezing touch that was making her shiver. His nervous pacing resumed as possibilities of complications swirled through his mind. Hypothermia. Frostbite. It was endless.

"It's not your fault, mate." Jack started at the sudden break in the silence, due to Bunny's soundless entrance.

"I know, but she's only like this because I left. Whoever, or whatever, did this, waited until I wasn't there to do this."

"What do you mean 'until you weren't there'?" the mountainous rabbit asked.

"You know what her face looks like. Her _mother_ did that. Ever since, I've stayed in the center tree in her yard when she sleeps. I' not spying on her or anything, but I'm not letting that happen again." Bunny did not miss the protective edge to his tone. He understood why he was looking out for the girl, he would have done the same thing, but the edge to his voice suggested more than an unwillingness to see her hurt. But not necessarily in a romantic way, either. He spoke of her as if they had been close friends for considerably longer than they had, as if his best friend was being threatened.

"If you're right, maybe it's best he keep her here, at the Shop. It would be safer for her and we can keep an eye on her." Jack nodded vaguely, but it was clear his attention was drifting back to the huddled girl. The Pooka sighed and slipped from the room.

(*)

Breath whooshed in and out of her chest as she ran, but she didn't know why she was running. Nothing was there except inky blackness. Silence pounded against her eardrums, the only sound coming from her gasping breathing. She fled from her non-existent foe, panic gripping her chest like a vice of iron. Empty nothingness rushed upon her without sound of tangibility and she stumbled, awaiting impact.

Earthen eyes snapped open and she bolted upright, certain the ground was about to meet her, but was instead met with a surprisingly friendly environment. Her eyes darted around erratically at the unfamiliar environment, panic never abandoning her. Chill cut to the bone, even beneath the thick fur quilt and she shrank back into the large chair she was curled in fearfully, until her eyes finally found Jack.

Her panic began to drain away, but slowly, because he was the only person or thing she recognized. His aquamarine eyes watched her warily, wanting to come nearer, but reluctant. Her hands unconsciously clutched the quilt nearer, and she wondered why Jack seemed almost… afraid, to be nearer than six feet.

"J-Jack, where am I?" her teeth quivered delicately at her question, her chill stuttering her speech.

"You're at the North Pole, at the Shop, North's workshop. Bunny and I brought you here after I found you in the woods. You were so cold…" his voice was soft, careful, as he tried not to alarm her anymore than being hundreds of miles away from home in a strange place would.

"I remember, I woke up. I looked outside, but… you weren't there." A comment meant to sound innocent felt like an accusation to Jack. He couldn't have known this would happen, but this _wouldn't_ have happened if he had stayed there.

"I know, I was called away. There was an emergency, but I was coming back." he explained.

"I couldn't find you, so I went for a walk, to clear my head. I ended up at the park. Once I got to the forest…" Her eyes grew distant and, for a split second, Jack swore he saw a flash of an icy blue in her eyes, but then, it was gone.

"She wouldn't go away. She wouldn't leave me alone. She won't… get out of my head! _You don't own me!"_ Willow shrieked, clutching her head. No longer caring if he made her colder, now that she was awake, Jack moved swiftly to her side, alarmed at her outburst.

"Willow, what is it?! Who is she? Willow, look at me!" Jack grabbed her shoulders gently, but firmly, and she finally glanced up at him, the icy glimmer in her eyes vanishing again. She was on the verge of hysterics, but began to calm down at Jack's soothing words.

"Willow, look here. It is not real. Nothing I there, it's just an illusion. Nothing is going to hurt you." Her gasping breath slowed to a more reasonable pace as Jack spoke to her, Movement flickered in the corner of her eyes as the others peered into the room to see why she was screaming.

"Are you the other Guardians?" she asked, her tone returning to its normal volume. Jack removed his hands from her shoulders and stepped back.

"Ah, I see Jack told you about us." The tall, robust man in the red coat, presumably North, said.

"A bit. He failed to mention that Santa was Russian, however." she said, a bit shocked at the accent. Jack chuckled at her comment, glad that her sarcasm hadn't diminished any.

"So? Bunny is Australian!" he retorted, drawing laughter from the others, as well.

"So I've discovered. I bit bigger than the stereotypical Easter Bunny, too." she said, a microscopic half smile tugging at the corner of her lips.

North laughed, but his expression quickly grew somber. "What happened to you, child? When they found you, you had nearly frozen to death."

"I…I don't know. All I remember was this… voice." Her hands shook, though not from the cold. "It wouldn't stop. I ended up in the forest, but I tripped, and fell into the snow. That's the last thing I remember."

"Well, whatever it was, you're safe from it now. You will be safe here, until we-"

"Wait, what do you mean 'safe here'?" she interrupted. "Look, I'm very grateful you helped me, I probably would have frozen to death if you hadn't found me when you did, but I can't just abandon my life! I have a job! My boss may be lenient, but not if I disappear for who knows how long! I have to go back!"

"I'm sorry, dear, we can't do that. Something out there seems to have taken a particular interest in you, and we can't put you at risk. Please understand." said Tooth gently, Baby Tooth nodding furiously from her shoulder.

Willow opened her mouth to argue, but she hesitated and considered what the multi-hued woman said. "As much as I hate to admit it, you're probably right. It's not like anyone would really be looking for me. I'm a big girl, I can take care of myself." she muttered.

She told herself that, but she knew that there was one person that just wouldn't buy that, she never did. Joe would worry, but he wouldn't report her, or anything. Mia, however, knew better. She just had to hope that she wouldn't act.

"So, what now?" she asked. Her lips and fingertips still help a blue tinge as the pulled the blanket closer and her face was still quite pale.

"Now, we need to get you warm. Your lips are still blue, you were in the cold for a long time." Jack said, motioning to the mug of milk. North, Sandy and Bunny had drifted away, once again trying to figure out what the threat was, but Tooth stayed behind again, this time settling into the chair opposite Willow's.

"I know you're probably sick of hearing this, but are you alright?" she asked.

"Still pretty cold, but I'll live." the girl answered. She seems to struggle to free her arms from the thick quilt, and her hand reached slowly for the mug. She fumbled for the handle, attempting to grab it several times before finally wrapping her fingers around the cup. She brought it to her discolored lips and sipped at the hot liquid, but pulled it away quickly.

Though it wasn't even remotely too hot against her tongue, the milk seemed to scald her lips.

Jack watched her carefully, eyes burrowing at her clumsy motions. It bothered him how much trouble she seemed to have moving. She was not a clumsy person, by any stretch, but no one would have ever considered that by the way her fingers fumbled for the cup. A sinking feeling churned in his stomach at what it could, and most likely would, be.

"Willow, what is the address of the coffee shop you work at?" he asked suddenly.

She looked up at him quizzically. "Um, it's… 6473… Weston? Or is it Westford? I don't know…" she muttered, and confirming, almost without a doubt, Jack's fears.

"Jack, what is it?" Tooth asked, also confused by the random question.

"Willow, it's 6474 Westing." he told her, before turning to Tooth.

"I think she has hypothermia."

**Ooh, suspense! I can be so mean sometimes… Remember, you'll only find out what happens to her when I update, so asking me won't get you anywhere. Instead, filleth thou review with praise, I adore that stuff. The next chapter should be up in a few days(not another week, I swear), because I'm meeting… Fluffythorne, at the library, because I find her input incredibly useful(seriously, look at her reviews), so I'm confident she'll help me make a better overall chapter.**


	9. Recovering With Wonder

**See, I told y'all it wouldn't be as long a wait, and I ended up having a very productive day with Fluffythorne at the library. She made me think of answered to plot-related questions I would have never even though to, yet would have ended up very crucial. Many thanks for that, O nitpicky Fluffythorne.**

**What happened to all my reviewers? Yes, last chapter was bad, and I am rather ashamed of it(being as riddled with errors and… just bad in general), but c'mon! What happened to you guys? Lokirka? chockykitty? Kika? Hello?**

**Well, at least to the people who DID review.**

**PCM-… I'm not sure what to make of… that. Was it meant to be good, or bad? I don't know.**

**Fellowship of Avengers- Well, crazy is a very general term, but in that sense, yes, she is. I gave Willow moderate hypothermia, which entails slow, clumsy movements and mental confusion and can lead to death in extreme cases if the person's core temperature is not brought up. But I'm not stupid enough to kill off my precious little OC like that. I have other plans for my dear Willow. She's still got some mental torment in store for her.**

**Guess- Wait, this plot has been used before? Crap, I thought I had actually hit something original. I bet they weren't as awesome as mine. *conceited smirk* (kidding)**

**Necromancer Dreamer- Awesome username, by the way. Does this count as hurrying?**

**shaadiaThePrincessOfWeird- Hey, sweetie! I'm glad you like it! I'm going to just refer to as shaadia after this, because the rest is really long. Nice to see a familiar face around here! (If that makes, considering this is the internet and we actually see no one). Don't worry about keeping up, my story isn't going anywhere. Thanks for reading it!**

**sassysaw- I kept writing… I think this is my longest chapter, where the bulk of the words is the actual chapter, not the Author's Notes. Maybe. I might have ONE that's longer.**

**MoonGirl1155- You think that it's complex now. Oh, god, just you wait. You're going to need a flow chart, or something, just ask Fluffythorne, she's heard the details(no spoilers to the public though! That is between me, you and the library wall!). Though I promise I'll keep it understandable. As for the vocab… um, I actually **_**have**_** memorized several sections of my thesaurus. I found myself looking up the same entries so often, I just memorized them. I even email lists of them to Shaadia when she can't think of them. (In case you haven't figured it out yet, we're pen pals from opposite sides of the world.) It also might be that I have read more books than most people my age have ever seen, because I have no social life whatsoever. What do you mean 'amazing sentence'? How much of my story do you actually read out loud? You give the impression, by the consistent compliments of my writing, that you would be reading a lot(not to be conceited, which I know I sound, I'm just genuinely curious).**

**Fluffythorne- Yes, she is a woman, and yes, we can now see a bit of Willow's gradual decent into Insanity, which is meant to majorly affect the plot, besides "oh, she's gone crazy, we have to do something.". And, yes, cliffhangers **_**do **_**have a purpose in the writing business(oh). I'm glad you hold appreciation in my use of Tooth's abilities to give insight on Willow. There are things I want the audience to know, yet cannot smoothly integrate into a simple conversation. I had to get creative. And don't worry, big chapter is coming sooner than you think…**

"H-Hypothermia?" Jack's eyes flicked back to Willow, not sure if her voice broke from cold or confusion. Her brows were furrowed as realization dawned.

"Think about it. You fumbled to _pick up a cup_. We both know that you don't fumble. You can't even remember the address of the coffee shop you've worked at for a year. You're under a thick fur quilt _and_ next to a fire and are still shivering, though you've been there for a good few hours. What else could it be?" his voice had risen ever so slightly in volume.

"But, I don't… this is… How could I let this happen?" she whispered, a light shiver running through her body to highlight Jack's words.

"Oh, Willow, this isn't your fault, honey." Tooth murmured. Baby Tooth flitted to Willow's shoulder, nodding vigorously. "You didn't choose to be… followed, by whatever this is." She stopped there, realizing that her hesitance to say _targeted_ did not help the situation, or reassure the girl. All it did was bring another round of realization over the utter enormity of what was really going on. Something was _hunting_ her, and no one knew what it was or what they wanted. Only that they wanted Willow.

"What am I going to do now?" she asked. Both Guardians looked at her, not sure how to answer. As of right now, she looked incredibly small beneath the enormous blanket in her huddled state. Her face was pale and her lips were tinged blue. She didn't look as though she could do much of anything, except stay there and try to fight off the cold.

Baby Tooth landed on her shoulder and looked up at her, squeaking out something unintelligible. Willow offered a small smile and clumsily set the cup back on the table, the mug nearly slipping from her fingers. She held her index finger out and the tiny fairy buzzed to it and perched there. Tooth smiled at them, though the blue of her fingertips tainted the lightheartedness of the scene.

Willow slowly rotated her hand, until Baby Tooth was sitting in her palm.

"You're a cute one. And you have a pretty gold feather, just like your mama." she cooed, brushing the tips of her other hand over the soft feather on the crown of the fairy's head. Baby Tooth grinned and poked her finger playfully with her beak.

Though Jack's eyes were turned to them, his thoughts were elsewhere.

_"She wouldn't go away. She wouldn't leave me alone." _She. So Sandy was right, whoever this was couldn't be Pitch. But whoever "she" was, could not be underestimated. The last time they were too cocky about a threat, they almost lost.

This unseen threat seemed to be poisoning her mind. Willow had shouted out at someone who didn't seem to be there. Something was in her head, trying to break her. This also explained the meddling with the dreams, trying to get into people's minds and destroy them from the inside out.

By why Willow? What did any of this have to do with her? Logically, someone would target a person with a weak mind, and she certainly wasn't weak. There was another side to this, but he didn't have any idea what it could be.

"Willow, why had you shouted earlier? Who were you talking to?" he asked, knowing what her answer would be, but he hoped she would offer up something else. Something that might tell them how this involved her.

The small smile on her face melted away, and Baby Tooth returned to her mother's side. "Honestly? I don't really know. This… voice, kept talking to me when I was in the woods. It was almost as if she was… taunting me. Boasting how she could control me and I was powerless to stop her. She told me I belonged to her now, as if I'm her property." Anger seeped into Willow's rough tone as she recalled the ominous words, how they echoed though the blackness and she couldn't seem to escape them, no matter how fast she ran.

"She?" inquired Tooth.

"It always sounded like a female. She kept calling me things like darling and dear, but in the sense that she was trying to put me down. That's why I shouted. I don't belong to anyone and no one tells me what to do if I have anything to say about it." The finality was clear in her voice and a considerable amount of her vigor had returned, though her physical appearance hadn't changed at all. Except her eyes. Defiance blazed in the depths of her green-gray eyes.

She slid back into the chair, pulling the blanket close as she gazed at the fire. There were several minutes of silence, before Jack glanced over to see her drifting to sleep.

"Poor thing. She's probably exhausted after everything that's going on." Tooth murmured. Her wings straitened as she rose into the air, drifting off to find the others.

(*)

It was like that for the next couple of days, idle conversations and menial chatter. Willow slept through most of it as her body struggled to get her core temperature stable, but it was slowly rising.

Jack, on the other hand, grated on everyone's last nerve with his constant fidgeting. Even Sandy was losing patience with the boy, though he had to admit that, even before, the child had tendency to talk. A lot.

Unsurprisingly, Bunny was the first to snap.

"Can you not shut your bloody mouth for more than five minutes?! Crikey, we're all worried about her, but this is ridiculous!"

After that, Jack settled with pacing on the roof of the Shop, snow swirling around in a light blizzard. Baby Tooth would come get him whenever Willow would wake up, which wasn't often. Yetis complained frequently about the excesses of snow they were having to shovel out of the entrance, just to keep it useable. Jack promised he would try to keep it down, but it was difficult to control through all of his restlessness. If he was on edge, the snow was equally as fitful.

A few hours into pacing, he was certain there would be a permanent strip of ice there now, the tiny little blur of color signaled him from the corner of his eye.

"She's awake?" Baby Tooth nodded spastically as she shivered, before darting into his pocket to escape the bitter cold.

Wind cradled them as it slowed his descent to the ground, lights glowing warmly from inside the Shop.

He walked into the room where Willow had been staying, to see her simply staring at the fire as she usually did. The color in her cheeks had almost completely returned to normal, save for the peeling scab that slowly receded to reveal the soft, shiny pink of what would surely be a long-lasting scar.

"Hey." she said softly, not even turning at his soundless arrival. Baby Tooth flitted out of his pocket and zipped to the girl. She cupped her hand and the fairy landed on her outstretched palm, smiling in that way only Baby Tooth could. They had grown rather fond of one another, Willow and Baby Tooth. The girl seemed able to slip away from the impending dangers for a few minutes, as the little fairy buzzed around and tugged playfully at her disheveled auburn waves.

"Hey." he replied, cracking a small grin at the nonchalance of the sort-of conversation. Her slender rubbed the top of the fairy's head, receiving adoring squeaks for the attention.

"Do you do anything when I'm asleep besides go up on the roof and pace? I hear Bunny complaining about it all the time, what with the mess you're making with the snow." she glanced over to him, the soft tones of her eyes flashing in the warm light. "Getting worried, are we?" she teased.

"Maybe a bit." he admitted ruefully. "You spent so much time sleeping, I wasn't quite sure what to do with myself."

"You could have gone back to Burgess, or something. You don't have to feel tied down, or anything. It's not like anything can happen to me here, and I'm sure you have much more fun messing with the lives of innocent civilians, than waiting around on me." Though she was right, he couldn't bring himself to leave. He had heard some of the things she had murmured in her sleep, about him abandoning her like everyone else had, and he just couldn't do it.

"That's true, I could, but Jamie is expecting a full recount of what went on at the Warren, and that kid can ask question like a teacher. That is not something I want to get stuck in the middle of." he said, worrying the smooth wood of his staff with his thumb.

Her fingers flexed and dug furrows in the quilt, dulled nerves only barely picking up the softness of the fur.

"Am I confined to the chair and blanket by the fire, or am I allowed to get up?" she asked, her feisty tone returning as she raised a cocky eyebrow at Jack. He smirked back at her.

"I don't know why you bother asking, it's not like you'd actually listen if I told you to stay there. You would probably move anyways, just simply because I wanted you to stay there."

"Very true, but I wasn't asking for permission. I was simply asking if I would get in trouble if I got up. I'm in Santa's freaking Workshop, I want to look around. I can't imagine many people have actually seen this place, and I'm no exception to the crowd of curious souls." The sarcasm slipped from her voice, being replaced with childlike curiosity.

Jack couldn't blame her, he had been curious, too, and she didn't even have to be shoved in a sack and chucked through a portal to get the opportunity.

"I suppose not, though I doubt anyone would have actually done anything anyways. I would rather you have on something besides that jacket, though." Her thin cotton jacket was all she had on when she left her house, instead of the thick one she usually wore, and couldn't it possibly be doing her any real good.

"Fair enough, but what am I supposed to wear?" she asked, shrugging out of the jacket, Jack taking it and hanging it by the fire on one of the stocking pegs. Jack considered a moment, before whispering to Baby Tooth, who fluttered off.

"What was that all about?" she asked.

"You'll see." he said evasively.

A few minutes later, Tooth flitted into the room.

"Hello, sweetie! How are you doing?" she asked, her voice reverting back to its usual indecipherable speed.

"I'm doing pretty well, actually. I was just asking Jack, here, If I was confined to this chair, or if I could look around a bit. He decided to nitpick over the thickness of my jacket." she rolled her eyes, though shivered lightly.

"Here, dear, use this." Tooth held out her equally thin feathered shawl, bright colors reflecting the fire. "It's a cold trip up here. I promise it's much warmer than it looks."

Willow raised an eyebrow at the ostentatious garment, before shivering again and accepting it. The pompous down settled over her bare arms, radiating surprising warmth given its thickness.

"Hm, a little flashy for you." Jack teased, receiving a half-hearted glare from Willow, but she was too cold for her to be more than mildly irritated. "Would you like the grand tour?"

"So long as North doesn't mind, that would be nice. I wouldn't mind getting away from the entire, crazy woman hunting me down for some reason, thing for a little while." she said, rising from the chair on unsteady feet, but jack made no move to help her for two reasons. One, she was cold enough without him in her personal space, and two, she would probably push him away, anyways.

"I don't see why he would. Try not to pass out on me, or anything, though." he said.

"Pass out? I've spent the past two days doing almost nothing but sleeping." One mahogany eyebrow arched again.

"Oh, trust me, you've never see _anything_ like this."

(*)

It has been several minutes, yet she still hadn't spoken, or even moved. Not even shivering, she simply stared around in awestruck wonder at the sight before her. Scores of toys fluttered, glided and swooped through the air, several narrowly missing her head. Dozens of yetis bustled around while carrying a variety of objects, ranging from simple things like wood and paint, to, what looked like, complex electrical components.

Jack grinned at the sight of Willow's shocked face, wishing he had a camera for the priceless expression.

"Impressed?"

"That is the very paragon of an understatement." she breathed, unable to tear her eyes away from the blinding explosion of color and movement. Stride no longer shaky, she stepped forward slowly, as though if she moved too quickly, it would vanish. Her sharp eyes flicked around erratically, trying to memorize every detail, suppressing the last shred of rationality that told her she would never be able to.

Jack leaned against his staff, watching as she turned in a slow circle to see the massive column that radiated pure joy. A gentle tinkling caressed their ears as a curious elf drew near. Willow glanced over at the crimson garbed creature, then turned to him.

"I'm sure I'm saying the same thing anyone else who has been here has pointed out, but I thought the elves made the toys." she said, before looking back at the tiny elf.

"Yeah, about that. I'm still not entirely sure the little guys are house broken, so I fear for the lives of any child that receives a gift they built." he chuckled.

Willow ducked as some sort of rotating sphere flew over her head.

"How does a place like this even exist?" she asked, eyes restless as something different caught their fancy every few seconds.

"I've been asking myself the same thing for years." he answered.

"And?"

"Obviously, I have yet to find an answer." he walked forward, but stopped a few feet from her, still not wanting to be too close. "I kind of hope I never do. I would ruin the magic of it."

She nodded. "Yeah, half of its beauty is its wonder."

"Wow, I would swear you've been saving that line, considering this _is_ North's place, after all." Jack commented.

"Well, it would just be shameful if the home of the Guardian of Wonder didn't have that mysterious imagination to it, which no one can never quite understand. It's what makes it feel like magic." she said, the words flowing from her mouth like scripted poetry. Just like at the Warren, she was a different person here, the aura of Wonder unearthing a very suppressed part of her.

"I wish I could just capture it all. I could spend the rest of my life drawing every detail of this room, yet I could never place it all onto paper." Her hand reached up to skim the bottom of a remote control helicopter. "Everything shifts and changes so much, it would be impossible to ever put into a flat sketch."

Though the moment of distraction was a wonderful escape, it could, by no means, last forever. Eventually, her gaze dropped to the floor and her soft smile fell. "A part of me feels like this is all too good to be true. To suddenly be whisked away from my shitty life, and dropped into a world of fantasy and fairytales. And even here, something still wants to hurt me. I don't know what I did that was so wrong that I just can't get a break."

Jack sighed. "You didn't do anything wrong, life will always have its drawbacks. The difference is, this time, you have people who want to help you and are willing to look out for you."

She looked up at the white haired boy, his pastel eyes promising that they would protect her. "You make an awful lot of promises, Jack. It's not that I don't believe you, I believe you'll carry them out or die trying, but I'm a walking taboo. Bad things always seem to happen when I'm around, and I can't help but wonder if it'll be enough."

All her life, it seemed to be one thing after another. Her father deployed to Iran, then him being blown to bits in an explosion a mere four months later. She had just turned nine, and nightmares plagued her in an unending torrent, though she now knew they were not caused entirely from her own mind.

But the most horrifying thing, was the dolls.

They looked like poppets, little Wiccan dolls used for witchcraft, often taking resemblance to her father. They chattered into her ears constantly, the menial noise worming its way into her mind and pushing her close and closer to her breaking point, No matter where she went, what she did, she was unable to escape them.

Then, one day, they just… stopped. After tormenting her for two years, they seemed to just vanish all together.

Until now.

Though she hadn't directly seen them, she could feel them watching her, always darting from her vision when she looked. That's when the woman began speaking to her.

She shuddered and pulled Tooth's gaudy shawl closer, but not because of the chill. Even Jack could see that, though he hesitated to ask. Despite everything she had been through, they had known each other for a week. At this point, whatever was bothering her was probably none of his business, but under the circumstances, he couldn't leave it be.

"What's wrong?"

She looked away, and he could feel that wall rising between them again.

"It's nothing. Just some drama from the past, but it doesn't matter." She walked past him, effectively cutting off the conversation as she headed back to the little sitting room where she first woke.

He watched her walk away, but didn't follow, not yet. There was something different about her, something besides she could see them at her age. He felt the need to protect her, as if she were a delicate china doll made of the most fragile porcelain. She neither wanted, nor needed, protection, but something about her made Jack want to keep her from harm.

She was a mystery, craving friendship, but unwilling to open up and trust someone. He was more than willing to offer that friendship, but, ultimately, it was she who decided whom to trust. Until then, he could do nothing but give her a reason to trust him.

He sighed and went after the girl, finding her curled in front of the fire once more, watching the flames dance with an unwavering gaze. Her lips still held the barest tinge of cerulean, as well as her fingers, but the color was returning. Her skin was still a few shades lighter than it should be, but the pink in her cheeks told him that she was finally getting warm.

He still kept his distance, though, because even though her body temperature was rising, the actual hypothermia would take time to fade, leaving her discoordinated until then.

Before he could take another step, though, Bunny came up behind him, and he turned.

"North was askin' for you and the sheila. There's something you need to see." he said.

"I thought we established my name is Willow, not Sheila." Willow called, rising from the floor.

"Never said it was, lass. Sheila is just another name for girl." he retorted, chuckling once.

"Be that as it may, I still have a name." She brushed past the two, walking in the direction Bunny had come from, though how she knew that when her back was turned, he didn't know.

"Sharp one, isn't she." the rabbit commented.

"Oh, you don't even know the half of it."

(*)

The enormous globe was covered by millions of little twinkling lights, but Willow still wasn't sure what it was she was looking at.

"Alright, I get the whole 'each child who believes is a light' thing, but what do I have to do with any of this?" she asked.

"This." The stock Russian rotated the globe, until the top faced them, showing where a single light shone brightly.

"Okay, a blue dot. I still don't see why that is so important."

"The dot is you. You believe, so light shines. What worries me is color. Should be yellow, not blue." he explained.

"Why does it matter what color the light is?" she couldn't figure out why it mattered if hers was a different color. Maybe it was just because she was older than your typical believer. North, however, did not agree.

"If so, why is Jamie's dot not blue? Or any of friends? There are other older children who believe. No, something is interfering. Question is, what?"

Willow was about to say something else, but was cut off by a low hum that filled the air. All eyes turned to her as she fumbled for her pocket. They all stared at her phone as it vibrated in her palm.

"Well, I'll be damned. The piece of junk still works." She glanced at the name on the screen. "Crap, it's Joe. What am I supposed to tell him?"

She was met with no reply, however, and silence hung in the air until the screen flashed for a new voicemail.

"Well. That's going to be an interesting conversation later." she commented in an amusingly offhand way. She slipped the phone back into her pocket and turned her attention back to the globe. "So, we were talking about my little belief light being the wrong color, correct?"

"Yes, but we don't know why. Nothing else to be said until we do." said North. At this, Sandy shrugged, before a few fast-moving images swirled around his head and he pointed to the window.

"Come again?" asked Willow, still not able to decode the mute Guardian's way of communication.

"He says time to spread dreamsand." North translated, before leaving the room under a heavy stride.

"Well, alright then." Willow murmured, watching as Sandy hopped onto a large golden jellyfish and drifted out the enormous, bay style window.

Willow fidgeted with the hem of her t-shirt, silvery leaf patterns standing out against the black material.

"What's on your mind?"

She turned to the white haired teen. "I was kind of wishing I was close enough to home to grab a couple sets of clothes, and maybe my sketchbook. I've been wearing the same thing for three days."

"Since when did you care what your clothes looked like?" he asked.

"I don't, but I mean _the same clothes,_ Jack. Wearing the same socks for three days is a little much, even for me." she said, giving him a pointed look.

"Well, I could bring you some clothes. I know where you live." Jack offered.

"You don't even realize how creepy you made that sound, even by total accident, do you." she asked, shaking her head.

"Hey, I was trying to be nice! You know what I meant!" he protested.

"Yes, I did. And that would be very nice. I suppose I can't talk you into letting me tag along, though, can I?" she asked.

"You suppose right."

She sighed. "I didn't think you would say yes. There's a navy blue backpack on an old coat hanger in the back of my closet that you can use. My gray bag is hanging on the knob." she directed.

Jack nodded as she turned back to the fire and he slipped from the room.

**Less of a cliffhanger, but I got grief from FT over them, so now there will be less of them, because I hold a lot of respect to her opinions and don't want to piss her off and she stops reading.**

**By the time y'all see this chapter, I will have started writing the next one, because it's going to be important and I'm excited, because I want to know what happens, too.**


	10. Queen of Insanity

**It took me longer to get this up than I would have liked, but I was at my mom's for the weekend and didn't get the chance. Honestly, I have very little to say, other than the actual chapter itself is over 4,500 words, which I am quite proud of. This one is the first arc of the story.**

**sassysaw- And wait no more, because here it is!**

**Sloppy Joe 313- You'll find out as the story moves along. No spoilers!**

**PCM- Really? That's cool. I don't really know who I imagined her talking as. Unless she talked like me, since she's based off of me, but I don't want to sound conceited. Or give her my ridiculous Southern accent, because I live in Texas(for you people who live in the States).**

**Fellowship of Avengers- Well, I don't want to be too mean to her(says the author who had her backhanded by an abusive mother, then get hypothermia), but I thought Baby Tooth would be a nice little reprieve for her. And I was asked about that by someone, over how Willow was being all cute. Her personality is rather complex, and, as stated before, based upon my own. I want her to have that rough exterior that can handle anything thrown at her, but on the inside, is rather lonely and longs for companionship. Thus, I created a bit of a bond between her and Baby Tooth.**

**Lokirka- I know, I didn't think you had forgotten me. I was just giving y'all a hard time. Yes, napping in sub-zero temperatures might just warrant some hypothermia, and would be odd if she **_**didn't**_** end up with it. Yes, our villain is a woman. I think that they are very underestimated opponents, especially when they don't strike an imposing figure. Also, that blue dot is something of more significance than some random woman jacking with her. In the well-put words of Fluffythorne, is has affected her as a person so completely, it has become key to her belief. The reason why, however, must wait for another time.**

**Fluffythorne- When you put it that way, I suppose she is living with them. I think they're just being cautious, but Jack is the only one who can truly keep watch over her when she's at home. At the North Pole, North is always there, and I would think the others are there pretty frequently, so she is better looked after there. And you've been complaining about the lack of action for a while now. Well, this should sate your thirst. If this doesn't hold people interest, nothing will, because this is all I've got through the means of a first arc, introductory chapter. No fights, but I promise, I have some epic ones coming. Patience.**

Jack's bare feet touched the snow lightly as he landed, his steps barely leaving impressions on the snow as he walked. A dilemma he had not thought of was resolved before it could become an issue, when he saw the window was still cracked open about an inch, meaning he could actually get inside. He pushed the frame up, the metal sliding soundlessly despite the rust that dotted the sill. He stepped inside, greeted by warmed air, though it would be rather frigid to anyone whose body temperature did not match the snow.

He leaned his staff against the wall as he peered around her room. For the most part, it was neat as a pin, save for a shattered whiskey bottle in the corner that had not been there before. Her desk, of which was covered in papers with rough, though still skillful, sketches, and the wall above it, which had been covered with dozens of drawings. He took a moment to gaze in awe at the beauty born of the skilled hand of Willow.

Scenery from the forest was etched from every season, each place seeming to have its own set of illustrations. The one thing he noticed, however, was that none of the drawing had color, that were all done in plain pencil or charcoal.

He turned from the beautiful collage of images, and opened the door to her closet. The handle was sticky, but the hinges swung in silence, implying that she had treated the door in whatever she had used to silence the window.

The small space made for locating the backpack an easy task. The threadbare bag showed several years of use, but was durable and well taken care of. He unzipped the thick zippers and pulled a few random shirts, though he made certain a few of them were long sleeved, and jeans from their resting place in the neat rows of her closet and slipping them inside. He remembered her comment about socks and eyes the small dresser in the corner. He hesitated to open any of the drawers, out of fear of what he could find.

He sighed, though, knowing that he would, inevitably, have to go looking in it, anyways. Pulling open the top drawer, he breathed out in relief to find that it was filled with his goal. And nothing else. He grabbed several pairs, before closing the drawer, not wanting to think about what the others contained.

The gray canvas bag was placed on top of the clothing, and, after a moment of thought, he pulled her thick jacket from the back of her chair and the worn bag was zipped shut. He reached for his staff, but as he stepped forward, his foot kicked the corner of something small and firm.

He knelt down and peered under her bed, seeing a few dust bunnies, her knee length Converse, and a small book.

He reached for the book, sliding it from its place to see a frayed burlap cover, which may have once had something printed on it, but was now worn off.

It was nothing fancy, just a plain book. None of the little silk ribbons poked out of the spine, so he doubted it was a diary.

Curious, he lifted the distressed cover.

There were none of the ridiculous warnings on the front page, telling him to _Go Away, OR ELSE_, none of that. He wasn't even sure why people bothered with those, it wasn't like anyone paid any attention to them. If anything, it made people curious what they were trying so hard to hide.

Instead, it was labeled 2011.

"She's had this book for _nine_ years...?" Jack murmured, turning the page to a very disturbing drawing for someone who would have been nine as well.

There was in image of a man with short, dark hair, the only distinct feature being a crudely shaded shadow for chin stubble, everything else in the default drawing style for children.

Of course, it was no help that the man's face was the only discernable thing that made someone realize it was a picture of a person, because the rest of the drawing was, what could only be assumed, chunks of flying flesh and blood as shrapnel from a bomb ripped the man apart.

Horrified, Jack turned the page quickly, only to be met with an equally terrifying image of, what was meant to be, the same man being violently tortured by figures whose faced were black with shadows. His attention was diverted to the tiny, wobbly writing on the back of the previous page.

_I had another dream of Papa dying again, last night. There are so many, and they scare me, so I thought if I drew them, they would go out of my head and onto the paper. That's what the lady in my book said. _

_He was just talking to some of his friends, something about Bin Laden or something like that, and war. Then, the bomb exploded and Papa exploded with it. I don't know why I see these things, I miss Papa, but why do I always see him being hurt? I wish they would just go away._

The words of a little girl shook him to the very core. Based upon the date, it wouldn't surprise him if it was Pitch messing with her dreams, back before he had begun stirring up serious trouble.

There were several pages of it, the year once changing as he flipped. She only seemed to draw and write down her nightmares, when she had been holding them back for a very long time. Or maybe she didn't want to relive the experiences of them again any more than she had to.

Leafing through the section labeled 2012, the drawings became less graphic, but more meaningful in the detail as her skill gradually improved. The truly terrifying things were not of blood and gore, but in the details of the expressions. The handwriting inched forward in neatness, and the drawings began to deviate from simply being her father. It shifted to Willow's own bloody face with her mother grinning maniacally in the background. He did not read anything when she was being depicted. He held no desire to learn of her own past of abuse through her mother, he had seen more than enough of it.

He stopped short when the next drawing was just a doll. I had short, dark hair and the shadow of stubble that made him realize it was supposed to be her father, but there was little to it. Just what was supposed to be a representation on her father in the form of the crude little doll.

Intrigued, he flipped to the coensiding entry.

_It was the little dolls again. They have been bothering me ever since I went to go see Stephanie at the asylum. They always look like Papa, but they say the meanest things to me. They tell me that he doesn't love me and he never did. He says that he's glad he's gone, now he doesn't have to see me. But I don't believe them. Papa would never say those things. Right?_

He began flipping faster after that, realizing the entries of a little girl weren't helping him. Strangely, though, they just stopped after the next year. There were no more entries of her nightmares when she turned eleven, until, several pages further, he found one labeled _Recent_, in handwriting that was neat enough that it would have matched hers now.

He slowly turned the page, to see Willow huddled in a corner with her hands clutching her head. Tiny shadows seemed to have a darkened outline against the black background, as if they were moving all around her. Her expression was not one of fear, but more like panic, in the sense that she was simply waiting for the tiny shadows to consume her in darkness.

He did not read the words on the back, the page was completely covered in ridiculously small, though neat, handwriting. He did not want the detailed repertoire of everything she experienced, knowing it would be drastically more thorough that the others.

He simply skimmed the other pages, most of them being her fleeing from something, or trapped by shadows. None of them ever showed what was chasing her, though, which must have meant she didn't know either.

He was about to just slam the book shut, realizing what an invasion of her privacy this must have been, but after skimming through several blank pages, he came to another section.

The label on the page read _Jack_.

Unable to resist, he began leafing through the pictures, knowing they had to have been drawn from memory. He saw just a simple drawing of his face, impressed by the amount of detail she had remembered. There was a drawing where his eyes were wide and his face was covered in snow where she had thrown the snowball at him, and another where he was perched in the tree the first time they met.

What he saw the most, however, was when the two of them were flying.

His arm locked around her narrow waist as her hands clung to his neck. The thick, messy waves of her hair blew behind her in a wild tangle. He wasn't even sure how she would have known what that looked like, or if she had simply guessed. There were also many drawings of the tops of the forest from her perspective. Dozens of bare trees whizzing by, not quite an exact replica, but still very good for being done solely from memory.

He closed the book and gingerly replaced the sketchbook back under her bed. He should have flipped a few pages further, though. If he had, he would have found the razor blade taped a few pages from the back.

Or, more importantly, the dried bloodstains on it.

(*)

"But light is blue! This never happened before, but we don't know why!" North stressed, irritated at having repeated himself several times now. Bunny simply could not understand way it was such an issue. So what if the girl's light was blue? She still believed in them, that was all that mattered, right?

"Awh, this is a waste of effort. We've been saying the same bloody thing over and over, and it's gotten us nowhere. I give up!" he threw his paws up in the air, and left the room, frustrated with the futility of the conversation.

"I can see both of your points." Tooth murmured, having been silent throughout most of the debate. "We don't know why the light is blue, or what the effects of it could be, but it doesn't seem to be doing any harm."

"For now, but what about later? Last time we underestimated small problem, it became very big problem!"

"I know, but we don't know anything about this. And there isn't anything we can do about it until we do." she said softly, though she made it clear that this didn't need to be dwelt on any more. They couldn't do anything right now, and staring at the Belif Globe wasn't getting them anywhere.

There was, however, a human girl with hypothermia, and she was the current priority. The blue light could wait.

(*)

The fire let out another hiss as the wood split and cracked. Flamed danced in the hearth, flicking back and forth as they consumed the dry birch.

Willow had not moved since Jack had left, firelight reflecting off of her tangled hair like a dull penny.

"Hey, I got your clothes." he called quietly. She turned, a matted clump of hair falling over her shoulder.

"I don't suppose you grabbed a brush while you were there, did you? I know I didn't say anything, but I hadn't thought about it until I tried to run my fingers through the mess, and ended up almost ripping out a chink." she sighed, rising from the floor. Tooth's shawl was still drawn over her shoulders, but she hadn't shivered since he had arrived.

"No, sorry, though I should have. You definitely need it." he chuckled. She shot him an impressive acid glare, before snatching the backpack from his grasp.

"Well, I have a cheap comb in my bag, but I doubt it'll do much without spending a good hour on it. At least my clothes will be clean, though." she was about to walk from the room, but stopped short. Her face held an odd look on it, as she was faced with a dilemma she had not previously considered.

"Um, where am I going to change?" she asked, a blush tinting her face slightly at the awkward question.

"I think there's an extra room in the back where the supplied for the yetis are kept. Let me run it by Phil, and you can use that room." he said, suppressing a grin at her embarrassment over such a simple question. The irony didn't escape him that she would be put off by such a menial, innocent question, with everything that was going on.

The yeti grunted incoherently at Jack's question, but he waved his hands at the back of the area and shrugged, so the Winter Spirit took it as a yes.

He led Willow back through the dazzling work space, chuckling again as her attention wavered every few seconds, only to snap back with a vigor that bordered comical.

The door clicked quietly behind her as she slipped inside.

Heavy wooden crates were piled all around, various different labels stamped on their sides. She raised a curious eyebrow at the FedEx stamps, bewildered as to where the crates were actually delivered.

Unzipping the thick zippers of her backpack, sifting through was Jack had packed, before pulling out a pair of flare legged jeans, and a plain, long sleeved black shirt, of which she had cut holes in for her thumbs. She also noticed he had put her thick jacket on the bag.

She slipped her shirt over her head, shivering lightly as the chill of the air settled over her mostly bare torso and shoulders. As she pulled the sleeves from her arms, her hands lightly brushed the thin, crisscrossing lines that ran from her elbow, to halfway down her forearm. She ran her fingertips lightly over the scars, proud that she hadn't even considered taking the thin blade from its resting place in over three years.

The black fabric shrouded her eyes for a moment as she pulled she clean shirt over her head, the jeans quickly following suit. She cocked an eyebrow at the number of socks in the bag, before grabbing a gray and purple pair.

The zippers of her boots seemed like a whisper in comparison to the lour roar of the ones on her backpack as she closed it. The cool metal of the knob beneath her hand gave her something to focus on besides the memories bubbling within her, going into the past from when she was fifteen, but not before a few snatched of them flicked through her thoughts.

The clerk had given her a strange look when she set the pack of razor blades on the counter, and nothing else. As she reached across the top to pay for them, even a complete imbecile could see the scrutinous glance he gave her arm, but he seemed to visibly relax when he found it to be unblemished.

He hadn't put the pieces together, that there may have been a reason she needed so many blades. A box of twenty? Surely not, but he didn't hesitate when he saw the smooth flesh of her forearm.

She didn't used to be quite as strong, and some days, the weakness finally got the better of her. Sometimes, life was simply too much.

Nineteen were thrown into a small pond in the middle of the woods six months later, the last having been used that very day, then taped in the back of her nightmare journal. Intended to be a reminder, but as a temptation, as well. She was sick of being so weak, only the bite of the metal could soothe the relentless voices in her head. She kept one as a test of her strength. It had only been used once, the proof of that was in the four thin red lines on her left arm, beneath the thin layer of gauze and under her sweatshirt to hide the evidence of her activities. Still plenty sharp enough, and that had been no accident.

Her hand went to her arm as she recalled the two months she ached to rip the stained metal from the book, to give in, but she refused.

Three years later, it has the same blood on it.

Her hand twisted the knob and she stepped out into the bustling noise of the Shop. She glanced around to see Jack hovering behind one of the yetis, freezing the tools as the furry creature reached for them. He laughed as the yeti protested angrily, shooing the young Guardian off like one would a bothersome insect.

Still chuckling, he floated to where Willow stood, her backpack slung over one shoulder. Her head was tilted back and the lightly curled waves hung down in a considerably smoother sheet, though it was still a long way from orderly. Not that it came as any surprise, Jack couldn't ever remember seeing her with her hair brushed completely smooth, aside from when she had gotten out of the shower, and even then, it had tangled once again by the time it had dried.

"You know, I really _could_ spend the rest of my life trying to draw this, yet still never get even half of it." she murmured.

"And I believe it. I've been coming here for eight years running, and it never looks the same twice." he agreed. He glanced down at her clothes, and was satisfied to see she had chosen a long sleeved shirt beneath her usual jacket.

The bright shawl was tucked neatly under her arm, its service no longer needed, as she began back across the workspace. Her eyes still darted around, drinking in her surroundings, but she wasn't as distracted as she had been before.

She and Jack had just barely entered the room, before the air seemed to grow cold.

"Jack," she moaned. "Don't you think I got cold enough without you dropping the temperatures in every room you step into?"

However, she wasn't the only one who felt the chill. For the first time, Jack could feel the eerie cold seeping into his frozen skin.

"I'm sure you do, but that isn't me." he said, instantly on alert. The icy blue of his eyes swept over the room, his stance shifting subtly into a defensive position.

He saw nothing, but when he glanced over at Willow, her eyes were glazed over as her blank stare fixed onto open air.

"Willow? What's wrong?" He got no response.

He moved to stand directly in front of her, despite his cold. She did not flinch or waver in her mindless trance, and as his own gaze bored into her earthen eyes, he was startled to see the blue wisps swirling in their depths.

"Oh no..." he whispered. He left her standing there, unsure what else to do, and practically sprinted to the others.

"Jack, what is matter? Is something wrong with our guest?" North asked.

"I don't know, there's something wrong with her eyes. They have these weird blue swirls in them or something- I don't know! Something's messing with her!" Half of his jumbled words made no sense whatsoever, but enough to alert the others that _something_ was wrong.

By the time they had returned to her, it was more than her eyes that swirled blue. Tendrils of cerulean mist danced around her feet, snaking over her body and face. Her eyes were solid blue, their previous soft tones nowhere to be seen.

"Oh, my, this is very bad!" Tooth exclaimed.

Jack was frozen in horror, the mist circling her as though it was trying to consume her.

"Well, what are we supposed to do?! This isn't something we can just fight off! It's a bloody fog!" Bunny said, waving a boomerang through the air.

"Sandy, can you do something?" The small Guardian looked up at North, his expression saying _I have no idea, but I can try_. Trails of golden sand began to mingle with the wisps of blue mist, the two whirling like a gleaming tornado. The golden flecks settled into her eyes, and Sandy's brow furrowed in concentration.

The mist began to jerk and quiver, while the sand hugged closer to her body, trying to expel the mist. Willow's hands began to twitch at the combat locked inside of her mind, between Guardian and the unknown threat. The twitching shifted to tremoring, which quickly became violent shaking.

Her breathing hitched and, for a split second, her shaking stopped. Then, a bloodcurdling shriek cut the air and she clutched her head. Jack whipped around to Sandy, but the ancient Guardian didn't notice, all of his concentration was diverted to the raging battle in the girl's mind.

Finally, after one more fierce howl, she collapsed into the ground still shaking, and the mist seemed to peel from her body and fold in on itself, hovering frighteningly close to Willow.

The core of the translucent pillar began to darken, solidifying into a rather small, petite woman, though the sinister light in her cold, blue eyes gave her an intimidating air. Her hair was long, but the wispy ends shifted into blue trail which eventually faded from existence. The ends of her trailing sleeves and the train of her dress did the same, giving the illusion her entire body was silhouetted in blue smoke, as she took shape kneeling next to Willow's curled form.

For a moment, no one dared to move, but the strange woman broke the spell by shifting her head to glare at Sandy, who had withdrawn from Willow's mind after having dispelled the threat.

"Hm, don't I feel honored. Graced with the presence of all five Guardians! What on earth could have warranted that?" her voice was high and tinkled with false innocence, but she chuckled darkly, and the soprano facade was dropped. "I don't suppose you're here because of little old me, now are you? After all, you're not even supposed to know I exist, much less be ganging up against me."

"You did a great job of hiding, until you started meddling in the minds of kids. Now, you're out problem." Bunny hissed.

"You think she is the only person I've ever seized? You Guardians are more dense that I could have ever dreamed! I'm not trying to tip the scaled of belief, or I would have been discovered ages ago." She laughed again, she harsh toned echoing from nowhere, and Willow shuddered on the floor. The woman looked down at the huddled girl, the smiled twisted across her face sending shivers down Jack's spine. She stroked her hair, the woman's touch sending a spasm through Willow every time her fingers touched.

Jack ached to lose a bolt of ice at her, but was afraid to for the same reason none of the others had struck. No one wanted Willow to be caught in the crossfire.

"Then what is it you want, and what are you doing to her?!" Jack shouted, seconds from snapping his staff in his tense grip, but he had to refrain from firing. It was too cold as it was, and his powers certainly wouldn't help.

"You honestly think it'll be as easy as that? if I tell you what my goal is, it will be that much easier for you stop me. No, I will tell you nothing, you will know once it is too late. Things are already being set in motion, but success still hangs in the balance. But when I do succeed, my legacy will never be forgotten." her hand still made motions through Willow's hair, mahogany strands curling through her slender fingers. "My little pawn will see to that."

"Pawn? You'll never touch her again!" Jack's shouts rang once more, and the woman's eyes flashed to him, each azure gaze burning into the other.

"Oh, and what will you do about it, _boy_? Once she learns of your little discovery, she'll not want to be in the same room as you." she hissed with a knowing smile that left a sinking feeling in Jack's stomach.

"Discovery?" he asked, his voice noticeably quieter.

"You honestly think I would let you leave here, and not be watching? I saw you, and watched as you read that book. She'll never trust you again, once she finds out. She'll want nothing to do with _any_ of you, and we can't have that, now can we?" she taunted.

"You think _that_ will keep up from protecting her? You're insane!"

"As Queen of Insanity, I should think so. And it's not a question of if you would protect her, but if she would let you. In case you've forgotten, she is quite stubborn. Try to keep her here, she will simply sneak out and freeze to death in the snow." Jack hesitated, knowing that was _exactly_ what she would do. The woman unfolded her legs and straitened with one fluid motion, her movements easily visible through the long slit in her dress, icy blue leggings covering her legs in a narrow sheath. Tension roiled in the air, but they still refrained from attacking, because of her proximity to Willow.

"Now, unless you want me to let that little detail slip, I will leave here with no interference from any of you." Her eyes bored into the angry expression on Sandy's face as she spoke. "That goes the same for being forced from the girl's mind." At that, her body dissolved into the blue mist, before vanishing completely.

Jack was upon Willow in an instant, pulling her upright as her eyes fluttered open.

"Willow? Look at me. Are you okay? What did she do to you? Did she hurt you?" Questions tumbled out of his mouth faster than her brain could process then in her disoriented state.

"I-I don't know. I'm fine, but the voices... she- Jack, for God's sakes, stop talking for five seconds!" she shook her head and pushed his hands away, before standing up. She swayed slightly in doing so, but shot Jack a warning look as he stepped forward to help her.

"Okay, fine. If you can tell me who she was, I'll shut up." he said.

"The only thing I can distinctly remember, is a voice saying _All will remember the name Hysterium_."

**Yep, there she is. For the journal entries from when Willow was young, any wrong grammar or over simplified means of speaking were intentional, though I think I missed my mark to write from the perspective of a nine year old.**

**Also, just as a random point out, if anyone is having trouble coming up with names for people, I may be able to help. I come up with names like Hysteruim, Luminesrya, Obsidia and T'sama purely from imagination(two are names of OC's from other stories of mine, and I also originally used Obsidia as my World of Warcraft name), and am willing to help others brainstorm names if necessary. Just PM me if you want help.**


	11. First Lie

**And we're back again! Man, I want to thank all of y'all for keeping up the awesome reviews. It is because of them that I update every few days, not every few months like I have before. I feel like I'm letting people down if I wait longer than three days. I mean, c'mon, over **_**seventy**_** reviews! It took my three months to get SEVEN on my other stories(though they aren't RotG, as I said in chapter one. This is my first.), and I haven't updated any of them since the end of May.**

**And now, on to those amazing reviews!**

**PCM- Yeah, shit's getting VERY real. So I did keep it up, and now... we need a new level of real, because, though last chapter may have been interesting because we find out who this crazy bitch is, there is a lot of drama in this one, which is about to make the plot a bit more complicated for me to write, but it will be interesting all the same.**

**sassysaw- Well, thou wait is over, because here it is.**

**Fellowship of Avengers- You think that's bad? Just wait until things REALLY start to escalate.**

**KikaKatTIOI- Why thank you. I see the same is going for WoE. (I TOLD YOU SO MARY. THIS IS WHAT HAPPENS WHEN PRIDE GETS IN THE WAY.) Now that I have updated, you should, too, because you kind of just left us hanging. NEED UPDATE. *grabby hands***

**MoonGirl1155- (to both reviews) Yes, her light is blue, and if you've paid as close attention as Fluffythorne has, that is very significant.(By the way, congrats, FT, for making that connection before the Guardians did.) Yes, Willow will eventually find out, which is what is going to make this thing so much harder to write, because Willow is extremely stubborn and will not take to kindly to having her book rifled through. **

**Snow-Nightshade- Well, I must have done something right, because you favorited and followed this story. I hope I don't disappoint.**

**Fluffythorne- Oh, yes, quite disturbed. She has just gotten pretty good at hiding it. She kept that book, for the same reason I kept mine. A reminder, except mine doesn't have a razor blade taped in it, just drawings, creepy ass poems and journal-esque entires. And, in case you didn't see(though I'm sure you did), she still uses it, and it would do her no good to have been thrown away. And she would draw other things besides the stuff in that book, but it's a nightmare journal, so they have no place in that book. Stephanie is actually the name of someone who tried to bully me in junior high, and failed miserably when I put her in her place(almost leading to me shoving her down a flight of stairs, because she knew I would, regardless of the repercussions.), and it's Stephanie Meyer, not Meyers (though the would-be bully's last name was Heck). Actually, her cousin is of little significance. I just needed a reason for her to go to an asylum, where, logically, Insanity would dwell, thus her first encounter with Hysterium. And, no, Willow is the only person in her family to have ever been bothered by Hysterium. And, if someone is drowning in that pond, I doubt they'll end up all that concerned over some scratches, in place of their lungs slowly filling with water. I'm thinking the water is the bigger hazard. I'm glad to have sparked your interest once more, and there is some good drama in this chapter (so I think), and things start to get interesting.**

**Wow, my longest reply is almost always to FT. But then again, if any of y'all have read her reviews, I have quite a lot to reply to. But anyways, onto the chapter!**

Brisk winds whispered quietly in the black night through Burgess. To most, it was only a light breeze. There was, however, one person who knew something was wrong.

Trails of the golden dreamsand arced through the air, their journey hurried that night as the rushed to their destination.

That alone was enough to tell Jamie there was something wrong.

Usually, the dreamsand would loop and curl in dizzying spirals, seeming to fall from heaven itself, but not tonight. Tonight, the trails were strait and rigid as they settled into the homes, the usual grace gone.

A thick tendril of sand neared the young man, and his hand stretched out to touch the sparkling comet. His fingertips passed through the fluttering grains and small figures pulled away, but Jamie only pushed his hand in farther, trying to convey his urgency through the sand. It whirled around his arm, climbing to the middle of his upper arm, before retreating back into the thick of the stream.

Jamie pulled his arm back, a tingling sensation coursing through it at it fell to his side. His head tilted backwards, warm brown strands of hair teasing his forehead and waving in front of his eyes as they studied the blackened sky. He did not have to wait long, before a star-like dot grew to the cloud of sand of which the Guardian he wanted to see was perched on. His look of extreme annoyance faded when he saw the one meddling with the dreamsand, was, the one and only, Jamie Bennet. His face shifted to a grin and he waved.

"Hey, Sandy. Long time to see." he said casually, waving back. The peaks of the little man's hair bobbed as he nodded.

"I noticed the dreamsand seemed a bit rushed. Is something wrong?" he asked, not even bothering with the usual small talk. Sandy's expression shifted to something more serious, and he nodded once more. Images moved above his head, in an attempt to explain what was happening.

"Um, a woman... messing with the dreams... she has a partner? No, that's a girl's she's after, right? Wait, why does she look so familiar... oh my god, that's Willow, isn't it? Jack's friend? She's the one this crazy lady is after?" he asked, still rather confused over the big picture. Sandy nodded, more images taking shape to tell that Willow was a target, and was now being kept at the North Pole, so they could keep an eye on her.

"Okay, so you guys have her up North to keep her safe. But why the rush? She's safe, right?" Sandy nodded, then shook his head in realization that he still didn't get the whole story.

"Wait, so she's _not_ safe? No offense, but talking to you isn't helping me at all. It's not your fault, I just have a hard time understanding the sand images." Jamie sighed in frustration as Sandy's images dissolved, the little Guardian realizing they were futile.

"Well, thanks anyways. If you get the chance, can you ask Jack to stop by? I'm thinking he might be able to fill me in better, especially since he's friends with her." He was about to walk away, before Sandy held up his hands with an idea. A long rod of sand solidified in his hand, and he began to write on the snow, but the words were a bit disjointed in his rush. The rod vanished, and Sandy tapped his wrist, saying he needed to go, and was already slipping behind. Jamie waved farewell as a cloud of sand billowed around his feet and lifted the Sandman back into the night.

Jamie stepped forward to examine the snow where he had written. Only five words were written.

_Stay away from blue mist._

(*)

Hysterium watched from the distance as the Guardian of Dreams finally left the Workshop where the girl was being watched. There was no doubt in her mind that he would try to stop her if she invaded the girl's mind again, despite her warning. It was much simpler to wait until he was no longer an issue.

She moved toward the bright structure no color spared from the outside of the building, the cold passing through her intangible body and she felt nothing. She peered unseen through the windows, finding the girl in front of the fire as she always was. The boy was nearby, also the standard, and to be expected after her visit. They were talking about what the girl knew about her, though it wasn't much. The girl only knew what Hysterium chose to reveal to her, and that was little enough that it made no difference whatsoever.

The girl rose from her spot on the floor, abandoning the sketchbook that was now visible, and spoke to the boy in a hushed tone.

_Better make use of the Dream Guardian's absence. It would be a shame to squander an opportunity._

The warmth of the room was felt no more than the cold on the opposite side of the wall, and Hysterium settled nearby the girl, hearing only the last of their conversation.

"... what if she comes back? Sandy is gone, and I don't think I can fight her off. I couldn't before."

"Don't say that! You're only as strong as you make yourself to be, and you'll never beat her if that's what you think!" he told her.

_Even if she thinks she can, it's too late now. Nothing can stop me._ She thought as she pushed into the girl's mind once more.

(*)

"It's not that I don't think I'm strong, but be realistic, Jack! This is a powerful spirit we're talking about! That's not the kind of thing your typical human can force away through sheer willpower!" she said, exasperated.

"Well, you're not a typical human! Not everyone endures constant abuse from their mother, and still plaster on a smile the next day despite what happened! That takes a lot of strength!" he replied.

"But that still isn't going to keep something like this at bay! Who knows how long she's been waiting to strike? Didn't North say that Pitch waited until he had the power to make himself known? What if she did the same!"

"Even if she did, you have to believe in yourself. I know that sounds corny, but I was pretty lost until I did." he said, his voice softening.

"But what if it's not enough? What if..." she trailed off, and Jack looked at her curiously.

"Willow? Is everything alright?" he asked warily.

She glanced down at her hands. "I-I don't..." she tried to step forward as she spoke, but didn't get far in either. Her eyes slid closed and she fell forward upon her knees buckling. She would have collapsed onto the floor, had Jack not stepped forward in alarm and grabbed her around the waist. Her head rested lightly against his shoulder as he set her gently onto the chair.

When he left the room to get the others, the blue mist curled away from her body, swirling until the features of a woman were visible.

Hysterium opened her eyes to look at the girl.

"Don't worry, my dear. You won't be needed for much longer." and with that, all traces of her vanished, her eyes dissipating like a reverse Cheshire Cat.

(*)

"Wait, so what happened?" Tooth asked when they were all back in the room where Willow was.

"We were talking about that woman in her head, and fighting her off, when she kind of just... stopped. She tried to take a step, but couldn't and almost hit the floor. I grabbed her before she could, and now she's unconscious." A short story, but there wasn't anything else to tell.

"So ya didn't see anything? Just talking and then she suddenly collapses? I don't buy it." said Bunny.

"Was there blue mist? Seems to be around when things like this happen." North pointed out.

"No, nothing. By the look on her face, she knew something was wrong, but only as it was happening. Until she wakes up, there isn't really much more to tell." said Jack, running his fingers through his hair.

Before he left, Bunny told him, "If I didn't know any better, I would think this girl is almost more trouble than she's worth."

"Except, you _do_ know better."

"Which is exactly why I'm still here, mate."

(*)

At first, she could see nothing but the same pair of eyes floating in the darkness. Cold, pale blue eyes, that seemed to radiate panic. Voiced chattered incessantly in her ears, but she was only ever able to make out one full sentence.

_He's hiding something from you._

She ignored the throbbing pain in her head as her eyes wheeled wildly around, trying to find to find the source of the noise.

Then, the eyes closed and vanished.

The shadows around her seemed to melt, until she was left standing in the forest back home. It was late summer, a warm breeze teasing the springy curls that hung just past her shoulders.

Her hand went to her hair, looking at the coiled ends in confusion. She hadn't worn her hair this curled or short since...

She began to walk forward, no longer in control of her actions. It took her a moment to realize she was seeing the world as she had three years ago.

The small pond soon came into view, and she stopped at its edge. The water caressed the shoreline, having risen with the summer rain. Her hand slipped into her pocket and her fingertips were met with the harsh metal of her razors. She pulled them from her pocket, only a few casting about reflections. The others were too stained to catch any light.

Holding the blades with her thumb, her other fingers stroked the thin scars clustered around the crease of her arm. She never cut farther than halfway down her forearm, so the incisions could not be seen by chance if her sleeve were to slide up. Fortunately, they were rather difficult to see anyhow, since they matched her skin tone very closely.

Her grip tightened unconsciously around the cold steel, their edges slicing into her palm without mercy. _Damn._ She threw the handful of razor into the water, the thin metal breaking the surface with a soft _splash_. She brought her palm to her face, seeing several thin lines across it. Those would be harder to hide, because the scars would stay red since they were on her palm.

She simply stared at the low ripples in the water as blood dripped from her hand, drop by crimson drop falling into the pond and mingling seamlessly with the crystal water.

The only difference, was the ripples from her hand were tinged in red.

(*)

Pain still throbbed in Willow's head as she stirred, the pounding wail increasing every second and spiking even more if she so much as twitched. The only thing she could hear was the snapping hiss of the fire and soft footfalls.

Gritting her teeth, she opened her eyes, fighting to ignore the hammering in her skull. Unsurprisingly, the latter noise was sourced from Jack's nervous pacing. Though she didn't know it, she had been unconscious for hours and he was beginning to worry there was something seriously wrong with her.

She lifted her hand to shove her hair from her eyes, and Jack caught the movement from the corner of his eye.

"Thank god, you're awake." he breathed, his pacing coming to a stop. "I was beginning to think you'd slipped into a coma, or something."

She groaned quietly and placed one hand on her head. "At this point, I wish I was. Maybe then I wouldn't feel like someone set off a stick of dynamite in my head. Or worse, one of the elves did."

Jack cracked a small grin at her comment, but it faded quickly in concern. Her face was slightly twisted from the pain in her head. "Are you alright?"

Willow dropped her hand and gave him a million dollar poker face. "Yes, Jack, I am perfectly fine. I drop unconscious and wake up with a headache like murder on a regular basis. No problems here."

"Alright, fine. That was a pretty stupid question." he admitted, holding his hands up.

"Really? I hadn't noticed." she said dryly. Then, she gave him an apologetic look. "Sorry, I didn't mean to snap at you like that. You're just trying to help. Though, in my defense, I'd rather be locked in a six foot cell with my mother for an hour that have to live through this." she muttered, rubbing her temples a bit.

Jack cringed inwardly at the mere thought of all the damage that woman could do in ten minutes, let alone an hour. Willow must have been in some considerable pain to make that kind of comparison.

"I don't blame you. It must be pretty bad, if you would prefer to be beaten without mercy over a headache." he said lightly, trying to take some of the tension from the air.

"You say that as if the 'headache' is already a form of mercy." she grumbled.

Jack was quiet for a few minutes, before asking, "So, do you know what happened?"

She considered his question, knowing it was coming sooner or later. "I don't really know how to explain it. It was like, I could feel the cold again, but, physically, I wasn't cold. More like I was cold in my mind, but I didn't know why. Then, there was a pressure at the back of my head. That's when I knew something was wrong, and I tried to tell you, but my knees just gave out. but I didn't feel weak, either. It was as if I was no longer in control of my actions." she sighed. "I'm not making any sense to you, am I?"

"Not really. The only thing I'm getting out of any of this, is that you're the only one who can tell when this is happening. There's no way for any of us to know what's going on." he said.

Her eyes unfocused slightly as she recollected on what happened. "I think that strange shadow woman is the reason I passed out. When I tried to tell you there was something wrong, it's like my voice simply refused to work. I think she knocked me out so I couldn't tell you what was going on until it was too late."

"Did she do anything to you while you were unconscious?" he asked carefully.

"Not really. All I could see were, what I would assume, were her eyes. Actually, I'm not completely sure if they were, because their color was remarkably close to yours, and she might have just been doing that to mess with me. That, and there was a lot of talking, but I couldn't make out almost anything it said." she paused, and turned slowly to look at him. "The only thing I could understand, was _He's hiding something from you_."

Jack inwardly cringed at what she said.

"Why would she say that, Jack?" her head tilted to the side and one eyebrow rose to a high arch, suspicion coloring her tone.

"I don't know! Did she say anything else?" she asked, changing the subject a little too quickly.

"I already told that was the only thing to understand. Why do you seem so concerned over what she said? _Are_ you hiding something?" Her tone had an edge to it.

"Willow, I-" he began, but she cut him off.

"Are you hiding something?! It is a simple yes or no question." she repeated, anger rising in her tone.

"Just let me-"

"_Goddamnit Jack, answer the question!_" Her voice sliced through the air like a knife, having risen is volume and pitch.

"No!" he answered. He immediately regretted his answer, but he was afraid she would react just like Hysterium predicted if he told the truth, but that didn't make him feel any better about lying.

There was a moment of silence and neither of them moved. Willow broke the spell by turning away from him.

"I hope not. It would be a shame if you turned out like everyone else, and lied to me whenever it suited you." Her words were cold, but the anger had dwindled.

Jack sighed and closed his eyes, leaning against his staff.

_What had he just done?_

**Oh, Jack, you shouldn't have done that. Now what will you do when she finds out? Nothing good will come of this, I promise. *evil grin***


	12. The Color of Titanium

…**well, this is awkward. **

**So, school started, and I was stupid enough to take AP World History, knowing I suck at history, and my mom is moving, which makes it hard to do six hours of homework a night and move several dozen boxes and heavy furniture in one afternoon. I've been unbelievably busy, and have had next to no time to update. I'm sorry, too, but it gets worse. Though I don't think I'll let it take two weeks again, updates are about to get very spaced out, with, at best, one a week. I'm really sorry, I hate to do that, because I want to know what happens next just as much as y'all, but free time just got astronomically small, and I have to do most of my typing in the middle of the night.**

**I have several work in progress chapters in place for other stories outside of RotG, so anyone who reads Generator Rex or Young Justice, those should be up soon. I have a long weekend because of Labor Day, so I will update what I can, but after this, updates will be slow.**

**However, for the long wait, I have an extra, extra long chapter done as compensation, and by the time most of y'all see this, I will have started on the next one.**

**To my reviews! (Holy crap, almost to ninety. I swear to god, whoever is reviewer 100 will get a cameo in here with whatever name they want as long as it's human. Only rule is no relation to Willow.) **

**sassysaw- I made Jack lie, because it was either that, or have a very stubborn girl probably get killed because she still had hypothermia, which would be the end of the story, because my OC would be dead. Instead, I chose to create drama and tension for something will explode on an epic level and make everything get ridiculously more complicated**

**Fellowship of Avengers- Oh, hell yes. I'm enjoying every second of it, as I slowly kill you all with the feels I radiate whenever I can. *rubs hand together* Soon, you will all be helpless to my Angst Monster, and with this new form of control, I shall… *Pepsi truck drives by*… and that is how I come to rule the world.**

**KikaKatTIOI-…um, I'm not even sure I know what that means…**

**Snow-Nightshade- Yes. Yes it will. You will all throw your chairs into the wall because you can't take the suspense, because I will leave a cliffhanger when things hit their peak to torture you all. But I know you'll all come back, because you simply can't stand not knowing what happens. Which is why I love you guys, you always comeback, even when I'm a terrible author for not posting for two and a half weeks*hangs head in shame***

**Guest- Yes, I have that song. I love Disturbed. The song is a little… intense for the type of music Willow listens to, and I don't think I can incorporate it well, given the genre it's in. But it was a good idea**

**kunfupandalover- Well, this wasn't exactly soon, I'm ashamed to say, but it's here now! So… yay?**

**PCS- *cough* itwascuriosityyouwouldhavebeencurioustooandyouknow it*cough***

**shaadia- You don't mind me calling you that, do you? The whole thing is kinda long. Thanks, sweetie, I can always count on you for encouragement. I'm sorry I've been so MIA on FG,I'vejust had a lot going on, but I'm trying to get the next chapters of DM, NT and MM done, so I can update them all at once, and I also have some ideas for songfics, though I don't know what I will be able to get everything finished. Grr, damn you history.**

**Teshka- I'm trying, I swear. Usually, I update every few days, but school has now made that infinitely more difficult. But I have this up, at least!**

**MoonGirl1155- Oh, no, that violin string has quite a bit more to go before it snaps. But I can promise you I'll make it good. Y'know, once I have gotten six hours worth of Mesopotamia and Ancient Egypt out of my head.**

**So, without further delay, Chapter Twelve! **

The thin shadows of her eyelashes stretched over Willow's cheeks, one a smooth, rich toffee and the other the same, save for a line of taunt pink. The scar wasn't nearly as prominent as he expected it to be, being only a couple of inches long and following the contours of her cheekbone, so it mostly blended into the shadows of her face.

Her breath was steady as she slept, golden bits of dreamsand swirling above her head. Jack watched the images dance, mostly of flight, but brief bits of the two of them made occasional appearances. Among them, were her perched high in a tree, laughing at a miffed Jack whom has just received a snowball to the back of his head, or him pulling her across the pond to help her skate.

But there were also less lighthearted ones.

One has to realize, the dreamsand does not solely show images of pure joy, it simply keeps away nightmares. However, anything that is a conflict of emotion is just as easily a dream as it is a nightmare, depending upon the person. North had explained to him, that dreams are where believers are at their truest, and that is where their true feelings, decisions and thoughts dwell. If they decide they don't agree with something in their dreams, then that is their true opinion, even if they don't know it.

He watched small gilded versions of himself and Willow after she had woken up. For the most part, he remembered the conversation to match words to their sand mouth, involuntarily flinched at her soundless shouts. Time seemed to slow as he watched the no tumble from his own lips, and a pang of guilt shot through his chest.

He lied to her.

In a moment, he had betrayed her trust, distanced himself from her and hurt her in a much deeper way than he knew he would ever be able to understand.

She had spent most of her life lonely and abused. Loneliness he understood, but to be abused on a daily basis physically, and abused verbally by everyone else, he couldn't even imagine. Though everyone could see her, they toyed with her emotions until they had become cold and calloused. They offered her false trust, and smashed it with an iron fist when she was at her weakest.

And he felt no better than anyone. She chose to take a chance with him, and he let her down. He watched as the scene came to an end.

But… it didn't.

His own form dissolved, and left her alone there. She seemed to walk through nothingness for a while, before finally dropping to the ground and clutching her knees. Her body hunched in defeat, as if in realization she truly had no one.

Emotion welled in Jack, realizing the effect that his own actions could have, and he nearly woke her, but hesitated when the images stirred.

His own form returned, placing a hand on her shoulder. At first, she reacted violently, ripping from his grasp and pulling away. She shouted something at him, but his response was not quite so brash. The next time she spoke, she didn't look quite to angry. Slowly, the rage slipped from her face, replaced by a rather lost expression. Finally, his arms lifted, and she took two long steps toward him and wrapped her arms around him. Her hands gripped at his torso as his own arms slipped around her, staggering a bit at the force of her slamming into him. She buried her face into his shoulder and he stroked her messy hair.

He watched as the images before him dissolved into nothing, and the remainder of the dreamsand dissipated as her eyelashes fluttered.

She glanced drowsily over at Jack, raising an eyebrow at his intense gaze.

"What's up with you?" she asked.

His awe over the realization that she would, in time, forgive him, brought him back to the fact he had yet to tell her the truth.

"Actually, I wanted to talk to you. You asked earlier about me hiding-" but she cut him off. She stared in terror at something behind him, her voice somehow both lowered, yet loud.

"Oh my god, no not again!" Her voice shook, and Jack whirled around at whatever was frightening her, staff poised to strike, but he saw nothing.

"What is it, Willow?!" he asked, confused.

"It-it's right there! Can't you see it?" He looked back to see her pointing. He followed her hand to a small table pushed beside an old bookcase, seeing a table and a bookcase.

"See what? Willow, there's nothing there." he told her, lowering his staff.

"B-but it's _right there_." She flinched, her hand jerking back. Her hands struggled to pull the quilt away from her body, and she began backing up, staring at empty air as if it was advancing upon her. "No, stay back! You disappeared years ago! _Leave me the hell alone_!" she shrieked.

Jack could do nothing but watch in alarmed confusion. "Willow, calm down. There's nothing there, I promise." He took a step toward her, but her gaze snapped to him, eyes wild.

"No, don't come any closer. I'm not crazy it's _right freaking there_, Jack! Stay away." Her voice hovered at hysterical, and she stumbled back several steps, almost falling. "_I said get away from me, damnit_!"

He looked frantically around, but there wasn't anything to see. He stepped toward her again, but hesitated to move any further when he saw the way she looked at him like a cornered animal.

"I said stay- _holy shit there's more_!" she tried to back up again, this time hitting the corner before dropping to the ground. "Get back! Please, just leave me al-ahh!" She screamed again, swatting at the air and covering her face as if she was fighting something off.

Unable to watch any more, Jack finally rushed to her side, trying to avoid being hit. He tried to grab a hold of her wrists to stop her flailing, being struck impressively hard in the jaw in doing so, and eventually managed to pin her arms together.

"Willow, stop. Look at me." he told her, his voice steady and calm. She continued to struggle for another minute, before finally quieting. She looked at him with a wary gaze, the translucent blue retreating from her eyes to the point Jack wasn't entirely sure it had been there.

"Just calm down. Whatever you saw, it isn't real, understand?" she opened her mouth to protest, but he cut her off. "I'm not saying whatever you saw wasn't there. I'm saying that it isn't real. Whatever it was can't hurt you."

Slowly, her panic drained away, and she let out a heavy breath. Jack pulled her into a gentle hug, stroking her hair and murmuring, "It's okay, it wasn't real…" She did not return the hug, but she did not resist it, either. She simple sat there, still shaking lightly, and allowed him to whisper reassurances into her ear.

(*)

"No, she's fine, she just had some kind of… episode. She kept shouting at things that weren't there, telling them to leave her alone, but I didn't see anything." Jack explained. The others had heard Willow shout, but chose not to enter when they saw the Winter Spirit was handling it, and surprisingly well.

"Do you know what she saw?" North asked.

"No, she didn't tell me, and I didn't think it was a good time to ask."

"Well, how are we supposed to stop something we can't even see? This is getting out of hand, mate." Bunny told him.

Jack sighed. "Yes, I know, but I get the feeling this isn't something we can help her with. Whatever this is, whoever this insane woman is, she's in Willow's mind, and I think Willow is the only one who can stop her. Maybe there's a reason she is the only one of us who can see those things that were after her earlier."

At that, a warm glow washed though the room from the window, which was pushed open and Sandy rode inside on a thick ribbon of dreamsand. He went immediately to Jack, images taking shape so quickly, one barely had time to form before another was taking its place.

"Whoa, slow down Sandy!" he said, watching carefully as the flurry of images slowed.

"Jamie wants to talk to me? About what?" he asked, but Sandy only shrugged. Willow's face took shape for a moment, then vanished. "Willow? Does he know something?" but he only received another shrug.

"You should go, Jack. We can keep an eye on her, she'll be fine." said Tooth.

"But, what if she freaks out again?" he asked.

"There isn't much we can do about it, except calm her down. Like you said, this is her battle, not ours. Besides, Jamie is your friend." said Tooth. "We'll take care of her."

"Alright, I'll go." he said, if a bit reluctant. "I won't be gone long, though."

"Of course not." she said, and at that, Jack took off out the window.

(*)

Jack peered into the window of Jamie's apartment, seeing the young man sitting in the corner reading a book. He chuckled at the title, yet another mythological reference book.

He was full out laughing, though, when the book flew from Jamie's hands at the sharp tap of his staff against the window. He pushed the window open to let Jack inside, grumbling over how he had lost the place in his book.

"Sorry, Jamie. I wasn't trying to startle you."

"But it sure is convenient how it worked out that way, isn't it?" he said, closing the window.

"It sure is." Jack's face sobered. "Sandy said, sort of, that you wanted to talk?"

"Yeah. I was curious what's going on. I notice the dreamsand was kind of rushed, and it made me curious if something was up." he answered.

"You could say that. Do you know anything?"

"No, that's why I wanted to talk to you." Jack sighed, running a hand through his colorless hair.

"Um, okay, though there's not much to tell. Well, there is some psychotic woman after Willow, named Hysterium. She calls herself the Queen of Insanity. I don't really know much besides that, other than she is making her see things that no one else can." Jamie's brows furrowed.

"And you can't do anything to help her, can you?" he asked.

"No. I hate feeling so helpless, but how can you fight what you can't see?" he quoted Bunny.

"Yeah, that's pretty rough. I mean, you met her, what, a few weeks ago, and now she already has some spirit after her?"

Jack mulled over the words of his human friend. "Something like that, but something makes me wonder if she's actually a spirit. If she was, the Moon should have some kind of power over her, some way to defeat her."

"If he can do that, why didn't he just take down Pitch eight years ago?" Jamie asked.

"Because he knew we would be able to take him down. That's how the Moon works, he works through the Guardians. That's why we're here, it's our job. If she was a spirit, I don't think Manny would leave us with no way to beat her." Jack pointed out. He shuffled across the room, touching the end of his staff to Jamie's book, freezing it solid.

"Y'know, I actually liked that book, Jack." he said wryly.

Jamie's brown eyes narrowed a bit as he focused on Jack's face. "What happened to your face?"

He raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?" he asked.

"Your jaw. It's this weird dark blue in one spot." Jamie said.

Jack's fingers lightly brushed his face, surprised when the feather touch brought forth a dull sting. "Oh, I think that's from when Willow clipped me. She was trying to beat off something, though I didn't see anything. I managed to pin her arms, but not before she nicked me. I didn't even know my skin could still bruise."

There was a moment of silence as the words on the snow flipped through Jamie's mind.

"What's the blue mist?" he asked, and Jack glanced up, raising an eyebrow.

"I thought you didn't know anything." he said pointedly, but the brunette adolescent merely said,

"I don't. I have a hard time understanding Sandy's little dreamsand pictures, so he wrote on the snow 'stay away from blue mist'. I have no idea what that's supposed to mean, just that it's important." he shrugged.

"Well, as far as we've noticed, whenever this weird blue mist, fog, whatever, is around, bad things happen. That's usually when Willow has some kind of episode of seeing or hearing things no one else can." Jack explained.

"Geez, Jack. You say episode as if she is crazy." commented Jamie.

"Well, what else am I supposed to call them? She's reduced down to shaking in a corner trying to beat away something that isn't there, while screaming nonsense! Sounds a lot like an episode to me."

"I'm not saying you're wrong, I'm just saying that, by calling it an episode, it makes you realize just how bad this whole thing is getting." he clarified, and Jack sighed again.

"Yeah. Actually, I wasn't even sure if I should have come here, because anything could happen. Tooth convinced me, though."

"Well, I'm glad she did, though I'm not sure if I'm supposed to be offended she needed to or not." he teased.

"Maybe you should. I might be replacing you with a different human friend." said Jack, grinning.

"Well, then, I'm very offended. Seriously though, I do get it. I would want to keep an eye on her too, just because of her home life. I would be hesitant to leave her anywhere." Jack nodded in weary agreement.

Jamie sighed internally as Jack sent the window another sideways glance while fidgeting his staff.

"Go." he said, and Jack glanced at him. "I know you're just anxious, so go. Now that I'm caught up on what's going on, you need to get back to her."

The young Guardian's tense posture relaxed a bit."Thanks, Jamie."

"No problem. Now go, before you freeze something important by accident." he teased, and Jack grinned before leaping out the window.

(*)

Willow brushed her hair from her eyes once more, before returning her attention to her sketchbook. She looked up again the column that rose up in the middle of the Shop, before sketching in a few of the strange revolving ellipses that whirled around it.

She sighed in dissatisfaction at the page, the soft shadows aligned almost perfectly, but it was... flat. Though the drawing looked remarkable close to the scene before her, it lacked that touch of magic that radiated from everything, and wasn't quite sure how to re-create it.

"Is something on your mind?"

She turned at the deep brogue, the large bearded man peering curiously over her shoulder.

"Oh, it's nothing. It's just, everything here has this feeling of whimsy, but even though I can draw what I see, I can't draw the magic." she explained. North studied the sketch for a moment, before offering a small grin.

"Look carefully at what you see. What is different?" Her eyes flicked back and forth a few times, not sure what she should have been looking for.

"Um, Wonder?" she guessed, looking lost.

North chuckled. "Good guess, but the answer is actually much simpler, child." For the first time, she noticed his speech wasn't so fragmented, and he actually spoke in complete sentences.

"Color. Your drawing is beautiful, but it is dull. You need color, my dear!" he said, a note of excitement slipping into his usually deep and intimidating voice.

She looked down at the gray strokes of graphite. "Color? I've never really put color on my drawings before. It always just seemed like too much."

"Well, it is a wonderful time to start." he said, eyes glinting like dark, vivid sapphires.

"Yes, it is." She stopped, realizing something. "But I don't have any colored pencils, or anything. Since I don't use them, I don't carry them." She admitted, and North chuckled again.

"Have you forgotten where you are, dear? Come with me!" He said, waving her forward enthusiastically.

He led Willow to a simple, dark red door. He pushed it open to reveal every kind of colored pencil, paint, pastel, chalk and more filling the room. Dozens upon dozens of intricately engraved sketchbooks and notebooks were stacked high, leather, cloth and paper covers peeking out in a dizzying array of colors.

"Help yourself." North said, his voice lowered as she basked in the awe at the sight before her. She stepped inside slowly, earthen eyes moving gradually over the space as she absorbed the sight before her. Her slender fingers danced lightly over an open box of chalk pastels that rested in a simply carved wooden box.

She turned to North, who still stood beside the door. "Thank you." she said.

"Just enjoy yourself. I know you will appreciate what is here, and make the most of it with your talent." With that, he walked away, leaving her in the room of colors to make the drawing whole.

(*)

Tiny dots of ice dotted the ground as the window swung open upon Jack's arrival. He looked around the room, but it was empty of everything, except the fire crackling softly in the hearth.

He stepped out into the heart of the Workshop, momentarily distracted by the rush of color and movement. He drifted up to the one yeti who always seemed to know what was going on.

"Hey, Phil." he said, grinning. The yeti shot him a small glare, speaking garbled mush.

"Hey, now, I'm not here to bother you. This time. I just wanted to know where Willow was." Phil gestured vaguely to the burgundy door with another incomprehensible slur.

"Thanks, Phil!" he called in a mockingly cheerful tone.

The door was rather simply, with an intricate border, and an engraving in the door.

"I wonder when North will realize he's the only one who speaks Russian." He muttered, turning the polished brass knob. The door gently swung open to reveal Willow at the wooden desk at the back of the room, asleep.

Jack took a few steps forward, realizing North must have shown her this room. All of the extra art supplies went in this room, and in the past few years, the amount of things in the room had increased, from kids preferring the digital drawing programs and whatnot.

Her face rested against the cover of her sketchbook, hair strewn messily around as usual, and her jacket had been draped over the back of the chair. A box of colored pencils rested beside her right hand, several pulled out, and a small tin of chalk pastels sat near them. She had pulled her thumbs from the holes in her sleeves to bunched up to her elbow. Judging by the amount of multi-colored chalk on her hands, she didn't want any on her clothes.

Jack reached forward to wake her, but his hand hesitated. His brows furrowed at the thin shadows on her arm, brought to his attention by the soft golden glow of the light. For a moment, he was unable to comprehend what they were, but his eyes widened in shocked realization when the penny finally dropped.

They were scars.

Dozens of the thin little lines striped both of her arms, and Jack stared at them, unable to fathom what could cause her to do such a thing to herself. Didn't she face enough pain from her mother without bring more of it to herself?

He reached out and lightly skimmed his fingertips over the raised abrasions, eyes scanning for any fresh ones, but they were all well healed and old enough to match her olive skin tone. A touch of relief managed to momentarily distract him with the knowledge she hadn't cut herself recently.

He jerked his hand back when she began to stir, her two-tone eyes flashing warmly in the soft light as they fluttered open. She smiled at Jack as she straitened, pushing her hair from her face. She didn't fight with the knots long, though, before ripping in into three sections and quickly braiding it.

"Hey, Jack." she said, wrapping a purple band from her pocket around the end. She placed the various supplies back into their boxes, before snatching up her sketchbook. "I want to show you something."

She grabbed her jacket from the chair's back, slipping it on. He watched as the almost invisible scores vanished beneath the thick material. She walked across the room, more bounce in her step than usual, before opening the door for him with an excited glint in her eye.

They both stepped from the room, and Willow practically ran back to where her backpack rested by the fire. She slid her pencil bag into it, before waving Jack towards her.

"Okay, long story short, I was trying to draw the Workshop, and it looked the same, but it didn't _feel_ the same. North came up behind me, and I told him as much, and he told me what it was missing was color. Well, I don't really color, so he showed me where all the different art supplies were and let me use some of them." she said, her voice picking up speed with every second. Jack had never seen her so worked up over anything.

She flipped open the sketchbook, holding it so Jack couldn't see what was on it. She chewed her lip a moment, before flipping it over, a grin tugging at the corners of her lips.

For a moment, Jack was simply overwhelmed by explosion of color on the page. After a moment, he was able to focus on the details of the page, and how the vibrant colors were actually the various components that made up the Shop.

"Whoa, you _drew_ that?" he asked, amazed that so much could fit into such a small space.

"Well, yeah. It took me a pretty long time, but I did." she answered, an unmistakable touch of pride in her voice. "And I didn't stop there, either."

She turned the page to reveal an image of Bunny on the page, drawn in her style that hovered somewhere between realistic and cartoon-ish. Soft lines of pastel formed the markings in his fur, and various shades of green streaked through the bright emerald if his eyes. She turned the page again, this time showing a portrait of Tooth. Magenta eyes sparkled and little ruffled bits of her feathers had been lightly outlined in pencil to distinguish their texture.

There were also full color drawings of North and Sandy on the next pages, all smiling widely on the paper. She turned the page one last time to show another picture of Jack.

He could tell she had spent considerably more time on his drawing than the others. He could almost count every strand of white hair and the frost on his hoodie could have been added to the page by him, if someone didn't know any better. The features on his face leaned more towards realistic that cartoon, unlike the others, and the light blue of his eyes shone with mischief.

"…I, I don't really know how to respond to that." he said, unable to tear his eyes from the page.

"Don't bother trying, your expression did a spectacular job." she told him. "I spent almost as long on this as I did on the one of the Shop. That one was full of ridiculous detail, but I was trying to make this look more real. I used to draw a lot of anime, and now anything but landscapes looks kind of like a comic book, unless I have a reference." she explained, closing the sketchbook.

"Is that why you draw so many landscapes?" he asked. "I saw several pinned to your wall, and I recognized most of the places from the forest."

"Yeah. I draw the forest because I don't like to do the city, it moves too much to make it both accurate and realistic. Secondly, the forest is much quieter and I like the peace of nature." she said, slipping the book into her bag, which rested next to her backpack.

For a moment, she was silent, the firelight reflecting off of her hair, highlighting the deep auburn a fiery copper where the light hit. Jack felt a spark of warmth spread through his chest, unable to help thinking how beautiful she looked, without even trying.

"Sing."

She glanced over at him, raising an eyebrow. "Why?"

"If you can sound as good as you had before, without trying, I want to know what you sound like when you meant to sing. Please?" he asked, his eyes growing wide in a way she found irritatingly adorable, like that ever-persistent puppy.

"Fine. One song." She paused a moment, considering the songs she knew, before closing her eyes.

_You shout it out,_

_But I can't hear a word you say_

_I'm talking loud not saying much_

_I'm criticized but all your bullets ricochet_

_You shoot me down, but I get up_

Jack watched in awe as the smooth melody flowed from her lips like honey. Her voice was clear, despite the soprano of the words. She was a better singer than artist, which was saying quite a lot.

_I'm bulletproof, nothing to lose_

_Fire away, fire away_

_Ricochet, you take your aim_

_Fire away, fire away_

_You shoot me down but I won't fall_

_I am titanium_

_You shoot me down but I won't fall_

_I am titanium_

The words slipped into his mind, and he was unsurprised to find it to be something else to describe her. He had come to realize, albeit slowly, that she seemed to listen to music that she could relate to. Titanium, in the sense she didn't let the words and actions of others faze her. At least, not on the outside. As far as anyone else saw, she brushed it off and carried on with life.

_Cut me down_

_But it's you who have further to fall_

_Ghost town and haunted love_

_Raise your voice, sticks and stones may break my bones_

_I'm talking loud not saying much_

For a moment, he wondered if the thin scars on her arms had anything to do with the death of her father, before pushing it away. He felt enough guilt as it was, without dwelling on it. Besides, it wasn't as if he could just ask, or she would know he saw the book.

_I'm bulletproof, nothing to lose_

_Fire away, fire away_

_Ricochet, you take your aim_

_Fire away, fire away_

_You shoot me down but I won't fall_

_I am titanium_

_You shoot me down but I won't fall_

_I am titanium_

_I am titanium_

_I am titanium_

The pure notes rang out, and he saw Tooth and Bunny peering around the corner, obviously having heard her singing. After a moment, Sandy also appeared, eventually followed by North. The Tooth Fairies hovering around Tooth's shoulders all sighed dramatically.

_Stone-hard, machine gun_

_Firing at the ones who run_

_Stone-hard, those bulletproof glass_

They all watched in silence as the mood of the song softened, causing Jack to realize with a bit of disappointment that it would soon be coming to an end.

_You shoot me down but I won't fall I am titanium _

_You shoot me down but I won't fall I am titanium _

_You shoot me down but I won't fall I am titanium _

_You shoot me down but I won't fall I am titanium _

_I am titanium_

The last notes of her rich voice hung in the air for a moment, and she opened her eyes.

Five sets of eyes gazed at her with an awestruck intensity, if you didn't count the fairies, and Jack slowly raised his hands and began to clap softly. Willow blushed at it was soon followed by applause from the others.

Her eyes met Jack's and her blush deepened at the glow in his eyes as he grinned at her.

"Wow… I knew you could sing, but _that_ was something else." he said. She glanced at the others behind him, nods and murmurs agreeing with him.

"Only because I've been working on that song for a while. I'm only good at a few songs." she said quietly, brushing several strands of stray hair that had slipped from her braid behind her ear.

"I find that hard to believe." Jack said, smirking. Various images that were obviously praise circled Sandy's head. The Tooth Fairies twittered amongst themselves as they gushed, and Bunny gave her a warm smile.

"Jack is right. You have talent." North chuckled. "I can only imagine the Christmas carols."

Everyone laughed at the comment, and they began to disperse, leaving Jack and Willow alone once more. He turned back to her once more, still smiling as she shyly looked up.

"You know, I usually don't sing in front of other people." she told him. "If I had known North and the others were listening, I probably would have stopped. I was only okay with singing in front of you, because you've heard me sing before, even if I hadn't realized it at the time. I've been working on that song for a long time, which is the only reason it sounded like it did."

"Even so, that was incredible." he said.

"Thanks. My instructor has been teaching me for about four years now, so I've had a lot of training and practice, but I couldn't have been all that bad to begin with, since I got the scholarship." she commented.

Jack stood, holding his hand out to her. She grasped it and he pulled her to her feet.

"What are you doing?" she asked.

A sly grin curled across his face. "You'll see." He gestured for her to come with him, and she raised an eyebrow. Curiosity was stronger than the hesitance, however, and she looped her arms around his neck. His hand clasped her waist, and he leapt out the window. Snow buffeted Willow's face, causing the shorter strands of her hair to pull loose and flutter around wildly. The snow had considerably lightened, no doubt courtesy of Jack, and only a few cottony flakes fluttered past as he brought her to the very top of the Workshop.

Just before they reached the top, he stopped and looked at her. "Close your eyes." he said. She gave him a curious look, opening her mouth to say something, before stopping. Her eyes close.

They drifter up the last few feet and he set her down on the tower. "Okay, you can look now." he said.

Her eyes slowly opened, and they widened at the scene before her. Twin hill of ice rose on either side of her, and the ocean stretched out before her endlessly. The water by the shore was frozen, but spread into cracks and drifting blocks as it shifted to liquid. Sunlight reflected off of everything, making it shine like the gates of Elysium.

"You said you liked to draw landscapes, and it seemed like before you needed practice drawing the sun on the snow." said Jack, hovering near her ear.

"Oh my god, this place actually exists." she breathed, still in shock that she was actually seeing this.

"Yep. And you're going to draw it." said Jack, setting her bag down beside her.

"When did you…?" she looked at it quizzically.

"Just now. I can fly pretty fast when I want to." he said.

She turned back to the crystalline landscape, before pulling her sketchbook from her bag, brushing the snow from under her feet, and curling onto the bare spot.

She began to draw.

**Yes, we needed some happy. Because it's the last you'll see for a while. The second arc of the story appears next chapter, so I figured I would cram as much lighthearted as I could into this chapter as possible, before I get back to the actual plot and start giving y'all panic attacks.**

**Aren't I so nice?**


	13. Breaking the Chain

**Well, there weren't as many reviews to the last chapter as I would have liked to see, especially since I worked so hard to make it a good, long one. Guys, I put a lot of time into that, and was expecting a little more feedback than that.**

**But, onto those of you who DID review(I which I thank you very much for, it's nice to know that some of you care enough to leave your reviews every time);**

**ELLE555- Thank you for saying that. My vocabulary is a little more expanded than most people my age, because I spent my childhood reading books bigger than me instead of socializing and making friends. As for the SAT thing, if you think my writing can be used for that, and I'm only 15, then I just got infinitely less worried about having to take them, because by that time, I should be some kind of writing god it I can write SAT material now.(I'm kidding about the writing god thing, but I am actually extremely complimented that you thing my writing is SAT quality.)**

**Savarra- Thanks. I listen to a lot of indie/alternative bands, so I usually don't have much trouble coming up with songs to use in my story.**

**Fellowship of Avengers- Why, thank you. Being crazy is very helpful whe writing a character who gets her power from Insanity, so that's good. And, yes, she'll forgive him... eventually. But I have to much more anxiety to cause before that happens, so y'all are going to have to sit tight for a while. Sorry, but I'm just mean like that.**

**PCM- Um, no, it was the Titanium cover by Madylin Bailey that I had in mind(also as an indirect reference to what Willow's singing would sound kind of like, but not QUITE as perfect as that. I'm not making a Mary Sue here, folks. That song is also my jam. I should post a cover on YouTube, so y'all know what I mean.), but I think he was the one who originally wrote it. I first found the song on a Rise of the Guardians AMV(if you want to know the meaning of good music, those AMVs have the best songs/bands EVER.) and it was sung by her. All I knew was that it was a cover, because that's mostly what Madylin Bailey does, but I didn't know who originally wrote the song. And your years of experience haven't failed you yet, because there is both a sad story, and a mountain of anxiety in store this chapter, so grab your Guardians plushies and squeeze 'em with everything you've got, because this will be tense.**

**Fluffythorne- "suicide is never the answer. Self-mutilation is."? What the hell? Was that some kind of jab, because I never tried to kill myself, thank you very much. I'm slightly offended by that. But, there are other things in your comment to address than that. She did not hit Jack intentionally, she was trying to beat off things that seemingly did not exist. No, there were no repercussions last chapter, but I've given you all enough fluff. Now, it is time for pain, and, yes, there will be Hysterium(I see what you did there) to pay, but not in the sense everyone is probably thinking. Yes, Hysterium is the reason no one else can see the little poppets(I mentioned before that poppets were the form they took), but they aren't trying to force her to do anything. The whole point of them is to make Willow believe she is going crazy because no one else can see them, which will eventually make her mind easy to take hold of. If Willow believes she is crazy, Hysterium can latch only that belief and... go from there. I can't say anything else without major spoilers. The hallucinations are mental, but they can indirectly affect her actions in the tangible half of reality. I tried to bring up Jamie, because you mentioned before that I needed to include him more, so I did. Yes, Willow can sing sing. I have exaggerated a bit from my own ability, but I also don't want it to be that incredible perfection MB has on the track. I will not be having any of that MS-ishness. I also picked that song as a way for Jack to be completely entranced by the song, but not by her singing alone. Thank you, I try very hard to keep even my own characters in character(does that make sense?), so I try to keep up with her drawing, as well. That is also why I included the singing bit in that chapter, because Jack knew she could sing, but he didn't know she could SING, however, I don't plan to keep her singing such a major part of everything as her drawing, because she doesn't really like to flaunt, and drawing is just a pastime for her.**

**sassysaw- Yes, midnight is a rather reasonable hour for me to be up, I can't help it. If I fall asleep any sooner, it's because I was reading my History textbook(I'm not kidding. It's THAT boring.). Well, whether I "bring the heat" will be up to you to decide, so here is that chapter 13 you were waiting for.**

Another light round of snow spiraled into Willow's lap, coating her drawing with a fine sprinkle of snow. She picked up her sketchbook and puffed on the freezing powder to clear the sheet once more.

She had been sitting on top of the Pole for about two hours now, drawing the glacier before her. The scene was nearly complete, taking her less time than usual because of the simply layout and lack of dark colors. For the most part, there were only the slightest shadows on the snow to indicate it was anything but a smooth blanket of softly shimmering porcelain.

Of course, this also brought forth the challenge of drawing the light on the snow.

A good hour and fifteen minutes of drawing and shading had been dedicated to drawing the highlights correctly. A few of the smaller areas held the light like it was supposed to, but the large masses of it were sketched and erased in an unending cycle. Finally, she dropped the pencil into the thin snow beside her and yanked the braid from her hair, hoping the messy length would shield the back of her neck from the drifting flakes.

"You know, I'm not sure if you brought me up here as a nice gesture, or to rub in my face I can't draw the light on the snow." she said, rolling her torso so she way laying on her back and watching the snowflakes as they swirled from the sky. Most of them floated around the tower, redirected by Jack so that she didn't get too cold after having only recently recovered from hypothermia.

Of course, he couldn't keep them all out, and whenever a few flakes slipped through, they always seemed to make her drawing their home.

"I brought you here for two reasons. One, the scenery is amazing, and you have a thing for scenic, and two, I thought this would be a good opportunity for you to practice the snow, seeings as how you have such a problem drawing it." he smirked.

"No, not snow. _Sunlight_ on snow." she corrected, earning her an eye roll. "Besides, it's not like you could do any better."

"Really?" he leaned forward, brushing his finger over the peak of a hilltop, coating it in a thin enough layer of frost it shouldn't damage the paper. "Seems to me I can."

She swatted his hand away from the page. "Yeah, well, when you can do that with a pencil, not your powers, I will eat my words." she said, rolling her eyes to him in return.

"Okay, I'll hold you to that. I have an eternity to practice." he grinned tauntingly.

She rolled her eyes before turning her gaze to the gentle cascade of the cottony flakes. After a moment, Jack flopped into the snow as well, but facing the opposite direction so their heads were side by side, but their feet went in different directions.

"Jack, what's it like to be able to control the snow, and, well, winter?" she asked suddenly, turning to look at him.

He considered her question for a long moment, finally answering, "Well, that's kind of hard to explain. It feels like the snow and ice is an extension of who I am, and it kind of is. It's connected to my emotions, so if I'm upset or anxious, the wind will pick up and the snow will turn into a whiteout, if I'm not careful. I can usually control it, but sometimes I just can't focus and it slips away."

"What happened during '68?" He gave her a curious look. "While you were gone, I was talking to Bunny a little bit, and he made a comment when he was telling be about me passing out in the forest. He said something like, 'If we hadn't found you when we did, it would have been '68 all over again.'." she explained, and Jack's face darkened.

"That was one of the few times I really lost it." His gaze shifted to the sky and she noticed the snow thickening and the gray of the sky deepening. "It had started out as harmless, just another snowy afternoon. It had gotten late, and I was just drifting though a small town in Louisiana, I don't usually spend much time that far south, when I heard someone telling a story. I got closer, and realized that it was coming from an open window in the hospital. There was a girl in the bed, probably around twelve, with IV's all in her arms and she was hooked up to about four different machines. It was kind of depressing to see someone so young in her position.

"I listened to the story the girl's father was telling her, and almost fell out of the air when I realized it was about us. The Guardians, I mean. The first time I was there, he was telling the story of who the Sandman was, and the next day was the Tooth Fairy, and so on. There were probably other stories before those, but I never did find out what they were. Anyways, for a while, it seemed like she was getting better. Sometimes, I would write on the glass in the frost, but no one ever seemed to see it.

"The last day I was there, something happened. I still don't know exactly what, and I never particularly wanted to know, but her health started to deteriorate really fast. For a while, she didn't say anything at all, just listened while about three doctors argued with her parents. It was pretty sad to watch, because up until then, she never really let her condition get to her. She smiled all the time and her eyes sparkled when she laughed. She would comment from time to time on how it sucked not to be able to walk around for herself, but other than that, she didn't really let it faze her.

"Eventually, they all left the room, I can't remember why. The window was cracked open and she had hardly moved since they had first begun to talk, so the only thing I could hear was the heart monitor beeping. Her eyes were a deep brown, but they were different this time. Before, they held this light to them, so full of life and charisma, but they were now dull, flat. For the first time, it seemed like she had given up. I started writing on the window again, expecting it to be ignored like it always was. But it wasn't. She just happened to glance over at the window, and the tiniest spark of like flashed in her eyes and they widened." he laughed bitterly, but the edge of sadness was unmistakable. "For the first time, someone could actually see me, or at least what I was writing, but at the time, I was thrilled she could see anything at all.

"For a little while, we kept up a small conversation, me writing on the glass and her talking. After a while, though, I could tell she was slipping. She seemed to have a hard time staying awake and the heart monitor was getting slower. I tried as best as I could to keep her going, tapping on the window whenever she tried to drift and writing about things that would maybe excite her a little bit, like the other Guardians, but even that stopped working."

There was a heavy pause, and Willow brushed some of the quickly accumulating snow from her jacket, before zipping her sketchbook beneath the thick cotton. The cold was beginning to seep through the thick layers, but she didn't say anything. Not yet, she wanted to hear the end of Jack's story.

"It seemed like only seconds, when her eyes finally slipped closed, but the flat chime of that machine seemed to drag on for hours before a nurse burst into the room, two of her doctors soon afterwards. I could see her parents in the doorway, crying. Her mother seemed to have some kind of breakdown, but her father hardly moved. He just watched as the doctors tried to revive her as his wife sobbed into his shirt. It didn't matter, though, they were too late."

Jack sat up and twisted around so he still faced her, his legs folding as he draped his arms around them. Willow also straitened, brushing off the thick snow that stuck to her clothes and hair, the white smears in stark contrast to the black of the fabric.

"Do you know what the worst part of it was? Just before she died, she looked right at me and said 'goodbye', but she wasn't just looking out the window at something she knew was there, no she _had_ to have seen me." His eyes dropped to the snow that now covered the roof in a thick quilt of crystalline glitter. "The only person to have believed in me in two hundred and sixty years, and she died when she managed to see me.

"After that, I just lost it. I was sad and angry that the life of someone so young had been so brazenly snatched away, but it was also an almost overwhelming sense of loss that the first person who saw me, or at least I'm pretty sure she did, had to be taken away. The snow came down like crazy, covering everything on this half of the continent with eighteen inches of snow, and at least twelve on the other." He sighed and shook his head, the silvery strands waving lightly in front of his eyes. "I still wonder what it was like for her parents, to have lost their child on Easter Sunday. Easter is supposed to be about Hope, but for them, it was the day all hope seemed to abandon them. That's why, for the longest time, I had a small grudge against Bunny. I thought that he should have been there to give hope where there wasn't any, but the spark of defiance had vanished, and I suppose he was too busy to help her."

Willow mulled over his words, having all but forgotten her original question that led to the story in the first place.

"Do you know her name?" she finally asked, unsure if there was really anything else to say.

There was another long pause, before he finally answered, "Mary Katherine Joyce."

(*)

Willow had continued to draw the landscape, having little success with the sunlit snow, but images of Jack's story kept flashing through her mind. Possibilities of her appearance would slip into her mind, as well as the snowstorm him grief brought and the girl's father telling her the storied of the Guardians. Her pencil paused on the page as she considered the story. It sounded like she would have had some form of cancer, and she knew it must have been hell for her family. Most of all, he father, whom had sat by her side for days and wove marvelous tales of the protectors of her childhood. The way he told it, the stories seemed to be what had kept her going for the longest time.

She couldn't imagine how painful it must have been for anyone to watch someone they love slowly waste away and die. When her father had died, two Marines had knocked on their front door, one holding an honor badge and the other explaining to the little girl and her mother why her daddy was never coming home again. Her daddy had been very brave and saved many lives, and she should never forget him.

She had cried for the next two days solid, and her aunt had come down from Montreal to comfort the grieving pair, but more than anything, she seemed to intrude upon that grief. Her mother would lock herself in her room all day with a bottle of vodka, whiskey on tequila and Willow shunned all company. She, too, would lock the door to her room whenever she was in there, and if her aunt would try to sit near her, she would simply get up and move. Eventually, she realized that neither Willow nor her sister would have any benefit from her staying.

However, she was wrong.

Within days of her leaving, her mother began to lash out at Willow, often in a loud, possibly violent way. She would shout that it was _her_ fault that he was dead, that he would have never gone away if he hadn't needed to protect _daddy's precious little girl_. Her mother would stagger drunkenly and take slow, clumsy swings at her wherever she tried to tell her mother that it wasn't her fault, but that only seemed to anger the woman more. Eventually, she learned to just accept whatever her mother would throw at her without complaint, for face a worse consequence.

Now, she answered to no one but the vile woman, submissively bending to her cruel will to avoid further punishment. Usually.

Her fingers lightly traced the taunt pink tissue that striped along her cheekbone, remembering her burst of defiance at her mother. She usually took the screaming rants in silence, but she bottled up anger had finally broken the pressure gauge and she simply burst, and had paid for it.

She glanced down at the drawing to see thin lines where the shaking of her hands had left thin trails of graphite beneath her hand. She sighed and slipped the pencil into her pocket, realizing that she wouldn't be able to do anything else to the sketch, she didn't have it in her.

"What's wrong?" Jack asked, noticing her bout of frustration.

"Oh, nothing. I just can't really concentrate. I keep thinking about that girl you told me about." she said, fiddling with the curled end of her hair.

Jack simply nodded, before leaning forward and looking at her drawing. "Are you still having trouble with the snow?"

"Yeah, I've erased it so many times, it's a miracle I haven't rubbed a hole through the paper." she muttered. Jack studied the partially completed landscape for a moment, the faint gray smudges staining the white of the sheet.

"Would you mind if I looked at the other drawings?" he asked. She hesitated a moment at the question, before closing the book and passing it to him without a word.

The cover of the sketchbook was a light brown with a bumpy texture. He lifted the cover to see another sketch of the pond, but this one was different. For starters, there was no snow, and the trees burst with the lush greenery of summer leaves. Sunlight reflected off of the water, creating the illusion of ripples.

"I thought you couldn't draw sunlight?" he asked, smirking.

"I can't on the snow. When it's on water, the light is really smooth, but when it's on snow, it's very uneven. Each little snowflake casts its own light, and there is so many little places to have to either leave white, or shade in, and I can never get it right." she told him. He nodded and turned the page.

This time, it seemed to be some kind of bird's nest, with three little eggs nestled inside, but it had only been partially completed.

"Why didn't you finish this one?" he asked. She glanced over at the sketchbook in his hands.

"Oh, I found a sparrow nest in one of the trees by the pond, so I started to draw it. I had only been there about half an hour, when the mother bird came back. She started squawking at me and biting at my hair, so I had to leave. I probably could have finished it from memory and educated guesses of what it would look like, but I decided to leave it alone. That way, people ask me why and I get to tell them the story." she said, cracking a small grin.

He leafed through several more landscapes from the forest, some from the ground, some from the trees. Only one stood out.

It was an up-close view of the pond, the focus being on ripples caused by dripping liquid. What caught him off guard, was how much darker the shading on the drops of liquid were, and how the deeper saturation seemed to follow the ripples. Images of the threadlike lines on her arms flashed through his mind, and he quickly flipped the page.

On the next page, it was another sketch of the pond, but this time, the trees were scantily dotted with shriveled leaved and several drifted across the surface of the pond. The sky in the background was a darker shade than most of the others and the reflections on the wiry branches blended into the deep tone of the water, so she must have drawn this later at night.

After a couple more pages, he came to the snow covered image she had been drawing when he first met her. She had simply given up in drawing the snow, having shaded it to look like there was no light on it. The ice on the pond still had the reflections, but the snow did not.

The remainder of the pages were the brightly colored images of the Shop and the Guardians, with the glacier being the last one. He closed the sketchbook and handed it back to her.

"These are really good. How long have you been drawing?" he asked, immediately regretting it. Though she didn't know it, he already knew the answer.

"Um, about nine years ago." she answered carefully. "Some... stuff, had been going on, and I just needed a way to pass the time. I got a sketchbook, and I guess it sort of stuck."

Jack nodded, but curiosity got the better of him despite her obvious reluctance to talk about it.

"What do you mean 'stuff'? Did something happen?" She stiffened at his question and she shot him a warning look.

"I mean 'stuff' as in I don't really want to talk about it." she said sharply. Jack sighed.

"Willow, losing someone close to you doesn't mean you have to shut everyone out." Her eyes flased to his face, both shocked and confused. His heart sank as he realized his slip.

"Wait, how the hell did you..." her eyes unfocused a bit and he could practically see everything clicking into place in her head. When she looked back at him, he knew if looks could kill, he would be pushing up daisies in all his immortal glory.

"Willow, let me explain..." his voice died beneath the acid glare burning through his skull.

"Don't. Say. A goddamn thing, Jack." she hissed, her voice low. "You know, I thought you might be different. I thought, maybe, just one person could actually be who they said they were. You _were_ hiding something, and you lied right to my face! That crazy bitch may be messing with my head, but she told the truth when you didn't! What the hell am I supposed to do with that!" she yelled, and Jack searched for something he could say that wouldn't make things worse.

"I-I didn't want to. She had told us that once you found out, you would try to leave and get stuck in the snow again, or something. You still had hypothermia, and I was afraid that something like that would happen." he told her, but her anger didn't lessen.

"But that still doesn't tell me why you would have even _opened_ the one book that I obviously was trying to keep out of sight!" she said, throwing her hands into the air, before taking a deep breath. Her hands shook violently and she clenched them into fists in an attempt to control her rage.

"I found it by accident. It looked like just a regular sketchbook, so I didn't know that it would be like a diary. I'm sorry, I wasn't trying to snoop on you." he said, guilt coloring his voice.

Her eyes were closed and she concentrated on breathing evenly. "The point is, that you opened it without my permission. You could have just left it there, but you didn't." There was blanent accusation in her voice, but even Jack knew that it was justified.

"Please, I'm sorry. I didn't-"

"No, don't apologize, you know damn well it's too late for that." she growled, cutting his off. Her breath whooshed out in a sharp hiss and she pinched the bridge of her nose. "You know, I probably wouldn't have even been half as pissed if you had just told the truth to begin with. Instead, you chose to lie, and broke any trust I had for you."

He shrank beneath her words, every bit of it striking him like a knife of shame. Betrayal shone bright in the duo tones of her eyes and her hands grasped her biceps to control the shaking.

"Willow, just listen." he started, but her eyes flared.

"_Listen? To YOU_?" Mirthless laughter danced in the anxious wind. "Wow, you must be pretty damn arrogant to think I would believe _anything_ you say."

He took a step towards her, hand half outstretched, but she stepped back with another glare. "Get away from me. I don't want you to touch me." she said, taking another step back. Jack eyed the edge of the roof nervously.

"Okay, fine, but please don't stand so close to the edge." he pleaded, the clay shingles only extending another eight or so inches, before there was a three hundred foot drop to the snow below.

"Yes, mother." she mocked in a high falsetto. "Oh, please, I'm a big girl, Jack, I can take care of myself. I don't need you, or anyone else, coddling me like I'm inept." she said, taking a small step closer to the edge, leaving only a couple of inches of space. She felt like a petulant child in doing so, but why shouldn't she be petulant? If he could lie to her so easily, doesn't she have the right to a bit of childishness?

Panic bubbled in Jack at her nearness to the ledge. Flashbacks to his sister at the pond raced through his mind, but they seemed to have reversed roles. Instead of her wanting to get away from the danger, she stepped towards it. He glanced at his staff, then how far away she was. If he moved fast enough, he should be able to hook her waist.

He shifted forward, preparing to lunge forward, but she caught the movement. Her foot twitched and she wobbled a bit. Jack took this opportunity and shot forward, swinging his staff, but she saw it coming. Her hand batted the staff away, and the motion finally caused her to pitch backwards just enough. Her eyes widened as her feet slipped from the edge. Both she and Jack scrambled for the other, but each was met with empty air.

She did not scream, causing Jack's shout to ring out all the louder.

_"Willow, NO!"_ he cried, frozen with fear for a split second. Then, he dove off the edge, praying that it hadn't been a half second too long.

Her eyes were wide with fear as she fell. Long hair swirled around her face and she spread her arms and legs in an attempt to slow her fall, and one arm reached up to Jack. He tucked his limbs to his body to quicken his own fall, but she was still several feet below him and the ground was coming up fast.

He thrust out his staff, hoping the length would be enough. Her hands fumbled for the wood and the tip of it poked her collarbone, but her fingers simply would not grasp it. She managed to curl her hands around it but her grip was loose.

Jack, however, did not realize this, and quickly slowed, thinking she had managed to grab the staff. There was a sharp tug as it caught on something around her neck, and the collar of her shirt tore, slowing her fall. She fell to the ground with a sickeningly quiet _thud_ into the snow.

Fists of icy steel seemed to lock over his throat at her still shape. He dropped to the ground, his staff falling from his hand into the snow as he dropped beside her. His hands shook as he struggled to remember what to do in a situation like this. He had seen it plenty of times during car accidents or fires, but the actions of the emergency medics escaped him for a terrifying moment, before a small tidbit came to him.

Hands still tremoring, he reached forward and pressed his fingers to the side of her neck, just under the edge of her jaw. Relief flooded him like the torrent of a broken dam at the gently pulsations beneath his touch. He slipped his arms beneath her neck and knees, lifting her gently. He was turning to bring her inside, when a glint of silver flashed on the snow. He shifted his grip and scooped the object out of the snow.

A crystal pendant on a snapped silver chain. That's the tug he must have felt when his staff snagged her collar. He slipped her necklace into the pocket on his hoodie, before leaping into the air, hoping more than anything that she would be alright.

**Okay, I was trying not to leave a huge cliffhanger, because, honestly, I was planning to cut it off when she fell and make y'all wait until next chapter to see what happened, but I decided not to under the consideration I did not want to face the grief I knew I would be getting from Fluffythorne for doing so. Besides, I still have a long way to go before the actual suspense comes about, so I'm not quite ready to kill her off that easily.**

**Also, guys, I'm disappointed in my lack of reviews. I think last chapter hit a record low, with only six individual reviewers for that particular chapter. If my reviews don't start going up again, my updating will start to space out again, because when I get more reviews, it lets me know people are actually into my story. If this keeps happening, I might have to resort to updating after a certain number of reviews, and I really don't want to do that to the awesome readers who HAVE reviewed every chapter like sassysaw, Fluffythorne, psychochirpingmistress, and Fellowship of Avengers(if I left someone out by accident, please tell me and I will add you in), because I always can count on knowing they will review. I don't want to withhold the story from you guys, but I'm a little hurt on how my reviewers have waned off like they have. I know several people who have favorited/followed this story, and even favorited/followed me as an author. I'm very appreciative for that, but if you liked my writing enough to FAVORITE me, why won't you review and tell me that?**

**So, please review guys, they mean the world to me!**


	14. The Fun Has Only Begun

**Alright, I've got a freakishly long chapter in store for y'all. I started writing, and I literally could not stop for two and a half hours. I tried to find a place to split it up, but there just wasn't anywhere that would work, thus, this monster heap gets splurged on you guys. I'm a-thinking that this might send me flying over the 55k+ mark on words, but there was so much I needed to get out. So I did, and this monstrosity was born.**

**Okay, I'll stop wasting your precious reading time and get on to replying to those reviews(which I'm pleased to say I saw a great many of.)**

**Fellowship of Avengers- Yes, but we're only halfway down the hill. This chapter is my second arc of the story, and boy is it big, but I didn't know what else to do with it, other than just keep going.**

**bluealonealexarose- Wow, that username is quite a mess to type. From now on, of you so choose to review again(and I hope you do), I will simply refer to you as alexa, if you don't mind. Thank you for reviewing, so here is an enormous update for you!**

**KikaKatTIOI-Yes, I couldn't resist giving her a cameo in here. Her story is just too sad and I think I needed to pay my respects to her as well. (For those of you who don't know, Mary Katherine Joyce is the daughter of William Joyce, whom is the author of the Rise of the Guardians books. All of the books are dedicated to his daughter, whom I do believe died when she was rather young. I don't know the full story, as I have yet to read the books, so I don't know the age she was, but twelve seemed reasonable to still believe in the Guardians and spirits.)**

**Teshka-...well, this is rather awkward to reply to. When I first read your review, I was rather angry and thought it was rude, and almost PMed you an angry rant. Later, I went back and read it, then re-read my Authors Notes where I asked for more reviews, and realized... you're kind of right. I thought you were a little harsh in the way you said it, I still do, but when I read what I wrote, even I found myself a little whiny. I understand that sometimes there isn't anything to say, but it was pretty disappointing to see how hard I worked on that chapter, and no one gave me any feedback on it. But that also doesn't excuse me griping about it the way I did. It always irritates me when authors write in every chapter and beg for reviews, and I now realize that what I did was no different. I'm sorry to you and everyone, and I don't think I would actually with-hold the story from those who do review, because that isn't fair of me. The one thing I didn't want to become was a whiny author, and that's exactly what I was. Even though you were a little harsh about it, thank you for telling me I was being petty. I will keep that in mind from now on.**

**Sloppy Joe 313- I seem to remember you from several chapters ago. Your username is familiar. As for the girl of '68, she was more than some little girl, and if you don't know why already, I explained in Kika's comment.**

**Alysiana- **_**CONGRATULATIONS, YOU ARE MY 100TH REVIEWER!**_** You have won the amazing prize of a cameo in my story, as Mia's daughter! Thank you for your review! As for the music, don't worry, I was just as bad. Up until three years ago, I had no idea who Avril Lavigne, OneRepublic, My Chemical Romance, Blink-182 and Coldplay were. Yes, I was THAT out of touch with reality. That is because the only radio stations I listen to are 96.3, 98.7 and 99.5, which are all country stations. Yes, I am that girl who can sing just about every song that comes up. So goes life.**

**Savarra- Why thank you! I do appreciate it when people like me enough to favorite me, especially when I write in three or four other categories, too. I am glad you find me "awesome".**

**ELEE555- Nah, don't worry about it. Review when you can, and I'll add my reply in when you do;)**

**PCM- Yeah, I wanted to do something different with the blizzard. Another good one was a fanfic called Dance of Death. The author of that did a freaking FANTASTICABULOUS job telling a story. (Yes, fantasticabulous is my own personal word, and is a mishmash of fantastic and fabulous. I use it when I can't decide which word to use.) I'm actually not 100% sure if that's what happened to Mary K., and I explained why in Kika's comment, but I thought it flowed nicely into the story. Yes, I made Willow fall. I needed some good drama in this thing, but to figure out a way for her to hit the ground, WITHOUT dying was actually rather challenging. That spire was really high, and a human can't survive a sixty foot drop, never mind the impact of a 300 foot one. But no, she won't die. As I've said before, I have other things planned and this is only my second arc, so I'm safe from Lego bricks for now.**

**sassysaw- Willow was both stupid and petty, but I would have done the same thing if I was a pissed as she was, and have done equally stupid things when in a rage(like punching a tree and ripping the skin from my knuckles). But she did, and now she has to face the consequences. Don't growl at me, growl at Willow for walking to the edge of the roof when she knew she was standing on ice and snow. Just not me.**

**Fluffythorne- I understand it was not your intention to be offensive, and now that you have elaborated in person on what your meaning was, the way I had interpreted it now seemed petty and foolish and I feel rather stupid for thinking you would be so intentionally insensitive. Wow, I get bizarrly formal when I'm either a) pissed off (hehe, Razer...) or b) explaining something myself. Weird. Anyways, I'm no longer offended in any way, and I had been unnecessarily to begin with. However, I hope you will continue to review what your favorite chapter line was, because I really enjoy seeing what little detail your mind so chose to pick up on.**

Bunny's ears twitched at the sharp creak of the window in the other room, followed by the shout of a certain teenage Guardian.

"_Can I get some help in here?!"_ It said, the edge of panic setting off worry in the Pooka's mind.

"The kid needs help." he said, and the others turned to him. "I can hear him, and it doesn't sound good."

"Oh my." said Tooth, her wings a blur of color as she flitted from the room, others close behind.

She gasped when she arrived to the room Willow had been staying in, the hearth still dancing with indefinite flame. Tooth's hand covered her mouth at the sight of the girl's limp form in Jack's arms.

The soft thump of Bunny's feet sounded behind her and he looked at the pair in shock. "What in bloody hell _happened_ to her, Frost?!" he asked, the anger obvious. In the rabbits mind, Willow was his responsibility, and now she turned up unconscious, and probably hurt? To him, this showed his lack of ability to take things seriously.

"I... she fell. I brought her up to the roof, so she could draw the landscape. I didn't think anything would happen, all of us have been up there at some point or another, and she has good balance." he started.

"But that doesn't tell us how she fell. Why was she that close to the edge?"

"Look, I'll explain later." he said, walking forward quickly. Bunny stepped to the side to allow the boy to pass, and he watched as Willow's long hair swung loosely over his arm.

North led Jack to a smaller room with three cots lined against one wall, and a set of cabinets along another.

"You have an infirmary up here?" Jack asked as he gently laid Willow onto one of the cots.

"Yes, even Guardians get hurt, Jack. It doesn't get used much, but anything can happen." he explained, pulling a flashlight and a pair of latex gloves from one of the cabinets.

"You're a doctor?" It seems there was much about North Jack did not know about.

"As a human, I was a soldier. Basic medical skills were taught in training." he explained, shining the light into her eyes, before lightly touching her neck as Jack had. "Over the decades, I have picked up a bit more than the basics, but nothing too elaborate. Setting broken bones, knowing when someone has a concussion. Things like that."

Jack nodded and he and the others watched in silence as North checked the girl over.

"Well," he finally said. "She is breathing normally, her pulse is a little weak, and she doesn't seem to have any head injuries. Beyond that, we will have to wait for her to wake up and ask her ourselves." He gave the girl a long look, before leaving the room.

Baby Tooth fluttered over and landed on her shoulder. The little fairy's wings drooped at the state her human friend was in, and sat down on her shoulder. Tooth also drifted over, brushing her messy hair from her face with an anxious touch. She clasped her hands to her chest and left the room, Sandy following her out.

"Frost."

Jack internally cringed at Bunny's tone, knowing he was about to get the lecture of his life.

"Look, I know it was stupid, but-"

Bunny cut him off. "I don't want to hear it. I know you didn't mean for this to happen, but there's something else to this." Jack was surprised at the lack of anger in his tone, though still was still plenty to go around. "You and I both know that this isn't something she does. I know she had good balance, because when you were gone, I found her up on the windowsill." Jack raised an eyebrow. That sill was a good twelve feet off the ground. "When I asked her how she got up there, she told me she climbed up the column by the fireplace, and when she got down, I would swear she had rehearsed it."

"Yeah, you should see her in a tree." Jack commented wryly.

"But the point is, this isn't something she would do. I don't believe she just slipped. What really happened, Jack?" he asked, the emerald of his eyes not only questioning the truth, but questioning Jack's own actions. No one else was up there but him, and he doubted she would have fallen all by herself.

Jack sighed and closed his eyes. "It was an accident. I made her angry, and she started backing away from me, even though she knew the edge was there. I tried to grab her with my staff, but... she saw it coming. When she smacked it away, I guess that was enough to throw her off balance, and she just... fell." His aquamarine eyes landed on her face, and guilt nestled into his chest once more, but there was something else, too. A tug in his chest that went deeper than worry.

"How did you make her angry?" The one question Jack knew was inevitable, but dreaded all the same.

"When I went to her house, I found this book." he began, and Bunny deadpanned.

"You read the girl's journal." he stated flatly, and shame leaked into Jack's eyes.

"I didn't mean to. It looked like a regular sketchbook, but the things she drew inside..." he shuddered.

"And you just _found_ this book?" Bunny asked disbelievingly, and Jack looked at the ground.

"Well, no. It was under the edge of her bed and I kicked it on accident." he admitted.

"There are an awful lot of "accidents" in the mess, kid. But it was obvious she was trying to hide it, so why did you open it?"

"Well, I knew she could draw, and I told you it just looked like a sketchbook. I was curious." he said, but it sounded weak, even to him.

Bunny just shook his head, furry shoulders turning towards the door. "I hope you learned something from this. As for whether she forgives you... that's your problem."

Jack had no answer for that as he left.

(*)

At first, it had been nothing, only empty blackness stretching on in silence. Then, small wisps of pale blue began to flicker at the edges of her vision.

"For the love of god, stop your little games. I know you're there." she called into the darkness, her tone almost bored. She turned and found Hysterium only a few feet away.

"Mm, a sharp one, aren't we?" she trilled in her falsetto, before dropping her tone. "So, the boy let it slip, did he?"

"As much as I hate to admit it to someone who thinks messing with my head is some kind of game, you were right. He _was_ hiding something." she said, her tone as melancholy as her eyes.

"Hm, not quite so panicky, are we dear?" the tiny woman asked, observing her distinct lack of emotion.

"I'm sorry, I'm just not in the mood for your stupid little illusions." she answered.

"Yes, my influence doesn't seem to have its usual effect on you." she said in mocking agreement.

"Why are you doing this? What's so special about me?" Willow asked.

"At first, you weren't all that special. Not really, I just picked you because your mind was rather weak as a child and you weren't cooped up in that asylum like your cousin. With you, I could spread my influence into the rest of the world." Hysterium shrugged.

"But that doesn't answer why you picked me, neither then nor now." she pressed.

"Well, I was hoping to avoid the whole back story explanation, but I guess it's inevitable now." The psychotic woman sighed dramatically. "As I'm sure you've figured out, not many people know of my existence outside of the Man in the Moon. There are actually quite a few creatures the Guardians don't know about, but we like to keep a low profile. For the most part, my power comes from those blubbering idiots in asylums like your cute little cousin Steph. Well, I say little, but she's thirty four, yet she acts six." she commented. "Anyways, I usually stayed in places like that. I don't really drive that many people insane, their own paranoia usually does a pretty good job of that for me. Either than, or there's people there who don't belong. Those people on the news with a so-called second sight? The ones who get put away are telling the truth more often than not, but aren't crazy for that. In fact a lot of them either get released because they give up trying to get people to believe them, or go crazy anyways, because no one believes them." Willow huffed impatiently as she drifted from the topic once more, but it did not escape the woman's notice.

"Oh, come now. I am the embodiment of Insanity, you can't honestly think that I'm not a bit off-kilter myself." she tsked.

"No, I pity the person that _does_ think you are sane, but can you please get back to the point?" she asked, exasperated.

"My my, you're no fun." she pouted. "Spending years just going from nuthouse to nuthouse gets rather boring after a while, but I can't really move through the public without sending everyone through minor widespread Insanity, and to settle on one random person and just send them flying over the edge without cause is bound to raise some eyebrows. Most people who come to an asylum to visit someone are usually very stable, or else they wouldn't go someplace like that. Because of that, I can't really get into their head, and I can't just go out looking for someone, because then I'm back to minor widespread Insanity. So, I was stuck waiting."

"What do I have to do with any of that?" Willow pressed.

"You, my dear, were actually happenstance. I'm sure there are plenty of others like you, but few of them venture into the looney bin, and I was never around when they did. Not until you came along. The moment you walked into that building, I could feel the stability in your mind slipping, figuring out why after poking around in your head a bit. I picked you, because you would be easy to influence, and you weren't locked in a padded cell. It was working quite nicely those first couple of years, but then that damned Boogeyman had to start stirring up trouble, and of course it had to be in the boy's hometown. I knew the Guardians would be prowling around the area for a while, so I was forced to leave to stay undetected. I waited eight long years to come back, because I had to be certain that the coast was clear. Pitch isn't really one to give up, I should know," she mumbled. "but he showed no signs of returning anything soon."

"'_You should know'_? What's that supposed to mean?"

"Observant little human, aren't you?" Hysterium grumbled. "Though the Guardians don't know of other immortals, the ones on the darker side of the line aren't quite as ignorant. For a few years, Pitch tried to pursue me. I told him I wasn't interested, but it was almost a solid decade before he finally left me alone and the black peonies stopped showing up. Peonies were always my favorite flower. But that's not important." she said dismissively. "Now, he spends his time cowering underground, barely having enough power to keep kids fearing running in front of a bus, or keeping young teenagers afraid of being alone at night. If that was gone, the world would fall into chaos. Even I must admit that, in small doses, fear is important. It would keep a pretty young thing like you from walking down a dark alley in the slums."

"Um, I'm not sure if that's a compliment or not." said Willow, raising an eyebrow. "But you still haven't told me why you came back."

"Ah, yes. You see, you were one of the only ones who, either still believed that the illusions were real, which is why you can see the Guardians, or hadn't also been locked away from the rest of humanity. You were the only one that I still had some kind of hold on, however small." she said.

"You don't have any kind of "hold" on me, you don't control me." Willow said defiantly.

"Your little _episodes_, as the Winter Spirit calls them, say otherwise. You aren't a babbling mess right now, because I'm not really trying to do anything. Your mind is still stronger than my aura alone, but you're like putty under my full power." she gloated, her icy blue eyes sparking dangerously. It unsettled Willow how much they looked like Jack's, the shade of blue almost exactly the same.

Her hands clenched into fists ar her sides, and she went to take a step forward, but the impact of her foot caused her side to jar and sharp pains laced through her abdomen like tendrils of fire. She gasped sharply and wrapped her hands around her torso, only to pull them away when it brought forth another wave of fiery pain.

"Oh, yes, I forgot to mention. Your little slip broke one of your ribs and fractured three others. I'm pretty sure you wrenched your left arm, too. If you can feel it now, then you're probably starting to gain consciousness. At least, that's how it seems to work with the crazy folk when they start clawing at themselves." she said, her nonchalant tone irritating Willow.

"Oh, thanks for clearing that up." she droned, and a dull ache began to throb in her left shoulder, spreading to her elbow and intensifying with every second.

"You're welcome, dear, but it is time for me to go. This was a nice little chat we had, but don't expect it again. I have other plans for you." she said, and her body began to disintegrate.

"Wait, what do you mean plans! What do you want?!" she called, ignoring the spasms of pain that were sent through her body.

"Oh, you're just as ignorant as they are if you think I'm going to stop with you. No this was too much fun." Her voice was growing distant. "I think I'm going to check up on that cute little girl. Your friend really does have the most adorable children." Threads of laughter rang from all around her, and Willow's thoughts sang with their speed as she struggled to figure out who Hysterium was going after.

Her thought began to muddle her pain increased. She felt reality creeping up and her vision blurred. Her knees shook a moment, before folding beneath her.

(*)

Her eyes snapped open just as she was about to hit the ground, and she rocketed forward. A small cry of pain slipped from her lips as the pain of her ribs and shoulder slammed into her full force at the motion. Her eyes squeezed shut and her right hand clenched as she waited for the grip of molten lead to release her, but it was excruciatingly slow to subside.

She finally opened her eyes, her breath heavy as she struggled to maintain composure against the pain. Her eyes found where Jack sat on the cot beside hers, his azure eyes wide with anxiety. Frost formed rough circles around where his hands gripped the sheet on the cot.

For a moment, they simply held one another's eyes, Jack's with worry, Willow's with reminiscent anger. He opened his mouth to speak, but she cut him off.

"Don't even say anything. I don't know why you're still here, but I'm not very inclined to talk to you, at this point." she hissed, cradling her arm.

"I was just going to ask were you're hurt." he said quickly. "It's obvious you are."

For a few moments, she simply glared at him, however, a short flare of pain in her side brought her to speak. "A few of my ribs are messed up and my left arm was wrenched."

Another flash of guilt sparked in his eyes. "Willow, please, just-"

"No, I don't want to hear it. Yes, I realize the fall was an accident, I don't blame you for that. It was just as much my fault as yours, because I was the dumdass who stepped closer to the edge. But I'm not going to listen to all these "I'm sorrys", because that doesn't change what you did, or make it any better." Her sharp tone brought no words from him. A part of him was relieved that she wasn't angry at him for the fall, but it was heavily outweighed by her lividity at him for the original incident.

He bit his lip and slid off of the cot. He walked up to the side of her cot as she watched him warily and slipped his hand into his jacket pocket, removing something wrapped in his hand.

"I really am sorry, you know." he said softly, placing the object from his pocket in front of her, before picking up his staff and leaving.

She reached forward and scooped up her necklace, fingering the snapped ends of the chain. The end of his staff must have caught it when she tried to grab it. It was a miracle he had found it in the snow, especially since he had to have found it when she had fallen, but she couldn't help but be grateful he had. Just before he had been deployed, her father had given the necklace to her and she had always worn it ever since, rarely taking it off, even to shower since it was silver.

She slipped it into her own pocket, hoping she would be able to get the chain fixed. Her fingers lingered on the smooth texture of the crystal, and as much as she just wanted to be angry at Jack, she couldn't help but be thankful he had picked it up. He should not have read her journal, but now that she had calmed down some, she knew he hadn't really meant any harm, but was simply curious. That didn't make her okay with him opening it, or quite ready to forgive him, but she wasn't nearly as angry over his actions anymore.

She sighed, then winced when her ribs whined in protest. She lightly touched at them, almost letting out a shriek when her fingers hit home and she found its source. Spots of red danced in her vision, and she pulled her hand away.

"Okay, bad idea." she gasped to herself. When she was able to focus on something besides the death grip the pain held her torso in, she turned her attention to her arm, which has settled into a constant ache. Even though it had brought forth agony the first time, she began prodding her arm gently, as she had before. Eventually, she found the source of the ache there, too, it did not hurt as much, because nothing was broken. Her shoulder hurt quite a bit, but to make sure it wasn't dislocated, she gently lifted her arm. Yes, it hurt, but not to the point of unbearability, as her ribs had, and she was able to move it, meaning it wasn't dislocated.

Unsure what to do then, she began to turn her body to attempt to stand, but before she was able to move, the door opened and North walked inside, Tooth fluttering in immediately afterward.

"Oh, thank goodness you're okay!" she said the moment she saw Willow awake. "I mean, you are alright, aren't you?"

"According to Jack, a few of her ribs are injured, as well as her left arm." said North, donning another pair of gloves. "Is that correct?"

Willow nodded. "Yeah. I think three of them are cracked, but one is definitely broken." She slipped off her jacket and carefully rolled up the edge of her shirt, revealing her entire left side to be mottled several shades of deep purple and black. The broken rib was obvious, the bones not quite lining up beneath her darkened skin.

Tooth's magenta eyes widened at the sight, but she remained silent.

North knelt down beside the cot, shining the light on her side to assess the damage. Finally he looked up at her.

"I am going to have to set the break. I will warn you now, it will hurt, but I cannot give you painkillers until I move it. The only ones I have will put you to sleep once They take effect, and I can't risk you moving once I set the break." he explained, the Russian accent rolling the r's softly as he tried to tell her in the way that sounded least painful.

"I don't want painkillers, I've had bad experiences with them." she told him. "I broke my collarbone once when I was seven after falling out of a tree, which by the way is a great teacher if you want to learn how not to fall, but the side effects messed with my head and I couldn't think clearly. I would rather live with the pain for a few days then be incoherent. And even then, it still didn't block all the pain."

"Are you sure?" he asked, and she nodded.

"Here." said Tooth, hovering down to sit in front of her on the cot and holding out her hand. "Squeeze my hand."

Willow eyes her hand for a moment. "I'm not sure if that's a good idea. I sprained my dad's pinky when the doctor set my collarbone, and I was seven at the time."

"Don't worry about it, we Guardians are stronger than we look." Tooth reassured her. The girl gave her a long look, but wrapped her slender fingers around Tooth's hand.

"Ready?" North asked, his hands poised above the uneven bones.

"As I'll ever be." she said, feeling a touch of pride her voice didn't shake. It was short-lived, however, when the pain of a dull, serrated dagger dig into her side. She squeezed Tooth's hand, trying not to grip it too hard, but that didn't stop a single shrill cry from ripping from her throat. Her eyes pricked as tears tried to well, but the forced them away. Glancing down, Willow saw her rib was now aligned correctly, but it still hurt like a branding iron beneath her flesh.

She glanced away and her gaze fell on Tooth's hand in her grip. The multi-colored woman held her back, but anyone could see the shade of light purple her fingers were turning. She quickly released her hand from captivity, cringing at the stripes of red her fingers had left.

"Sorry." she apologized as Tooth flexed her hand.

"Oh, it's fine. I'll admit though, you do have quite a grip." she said lightly, flexing her fingers, but she knew her hand would be a little sore for a few days.

"The worst of it is over, it just needs to be wrapped." North told her, gauze and bandages in his hand. "This will hurt a bit, too, because it must be tight, but not too much."

Willow nodded, tucking up the other side of her shirt so her chest was still covered, but her torso could be bound. She barely flinched when he tugged at the bandages over the gauze, because it was nothing in comparison to the setting of the bone.

"That should be all. As for your arm, you seem able to move it, so I warrant you tore a few muscles. There isn't much that can be done about that, except to keep from lifting too much weight with that arm. It should heal in a few days."

"Thanks, North. Can I walk around, or am I stuck in here?" she asked.

"It would be better for you not to walk around, but you seem to be too stubborn for that. Try not to move around too much, or you'll move the bones, but if you're careful, I suppose you can walk a bit." he said, and she immediately began to inch to the edge of the cot after wrapping her jacket around her shoulders. Her face paled at the strain, but she didn't react otherwise.

The Russian left the room, but Tooth remained, that motherly urge once again preventing her from leaving the girl.

Willow set her feet carefully on the floor, but when she stood, she pressure on her side increased and her knees almost buckled. Her right hand caught the edge of the cot, and Tooth clamped her hand on the girl's uninjured arm to steady her. After a moment, she dropped to the floor and pulled her arm around her neck.

"Thanks." Willow said gratefully, leaning on the feathered woman as she walked forward.

Her progress was a bit slow, but she eventually made her way to what she had begun mentally referring to as The Hearth Room, because it seemed to serve no other purpose that a nice place to sit by the fire. Within that room, was everyone else, sans North.

"See, I knew the sheila would be alright." Bunny said to no one in particular.

Willow gave him a small smirk. "I thought we had established my name isn't Sheila." she said dryly, and Bunny chuckled. A grin was stretched over Sandy's little golden face, and a puzzling flurry of gilded images danced above his head. "I have no idea what that means." she admitted.

"Simply put, he's glad you're okay." said Tooth. "We all are. That was quite a drop, and it's a miracle you survived."

Jack was perched up in the window sill she had been in not all that long ago, remaining silent but his look was pained when he took in the state she was in. She looked up at the young Guardian for a moment.

"If Jack hadn't have been there, I probably wouldn't have." she said quietly, and her eyes softened for a moment, then she looked away. With Tooth's assistance, she managed to settle into the armchair, tucking her legs beneath her body.

Sandy poked Bunny in the side before tapping his wrist and pointing at the window. "Eh, Sandy says it's time to spread the dreamsand." he translated, and the little Guardian waved at Willow, before snapping a pair of goggles over his face and flying out the window on a golden hanglider.

Once Sandy had left, Bunny shuffled awkwardly a moment at the room's tense silence. "So, I'm sure North needs some help with... something or other..." he cringed at the pathetic statement, before just simply leaving. He paused at the doorway, glancing back at Willow. "I'm glad you're alright."

She smiled at him and the rabbit was gone. She glanced over at Tooth, who in turn glanced at Jack for a split second, and nodded. Then, she too, was gone.

Her fingers twiddled in her lap for a moment and she gazed at the fire. After a minute, she heard the soft _shh_ of fabric moving as Jack slipped from the sill, then felt the wind cushion his fall. He stepping into her vision hesitantly, but her face remained a calm, smooth poker face. He leaned his staff against the chair opposite to hers, before sitting on its edge.

He wanted to say something, but he knew if he tried, he would just cut him off again. So he waited for her to speak.

"You found my necklace." That was it? He had expected another lecture on how he was a liar and shouldn't have been poking through her things. Not an undeserved one, because she would have been right on both accounts, but he was still surprised.

"Um, yeah. I saw it on the snow after you... fell. I figured you might want it back." he said carefully, almost certain her calm behavior wouldn't last.

"I'm going to have to get the chain fixed, but I'm glad you found it." For a moment, they were both quiet. Once again, it was Willow who broke the silence. He braced himself for her shouts.

"Thank you for catching me." _What?_

"Wait, you're not... I thought... I didn't catch you." he managed, baffled at the route she had taken. She was _thanking_ him.

"Well, if you hadn't been there, I would probably have a broken neck, not a broken rib." she said dryly.

"If I hadn't been there, you wouldn't have fallen to begin with." he pointed out. "If I had just left that stupid book alone, none of this would be happening."

Willow didn't contradict his statement, but neither did she agree to it or rub it in. "You may have opened the book, but I was the idiot who stepped closer to the edge. You warned me how close I was, but I didn't listen."

"But when I tried to pull you away, you only fell when you batted my staff away. You wouldn't have slipped if I hadn't tried to grab you."

"Yes, but I was being cocky. You were trying to keep me safe, and, in a way, I rejected your help. As a result, I fell. If I hadn't, nothing would have happened then, either." she retorted.

"This is going nowhere." Jack said.

"Exactly. It's no more your fault than it is mine." she said.

"Well, regardless whose fault it is, you're hurt because of it." he told her.

"But we both know I could be worse than hurt."

"Were going in circles again." he sighed.

"Might be a good indication to drop it, then." she said wryly. She shifted her position a bit, wincing at the movement.

"Are you..." he trailed off, leaving the question hanging.

"Yeah, I'll live. It's going to be hell to do much more than breathe, but I'm sure I'll manage." she said, forcing a small grin that would have fooled no one.

Her watched chimed, and she glanced at it to see it was three in the morning. "Wow, I sure have been out of touch with reality." She began to unfold her legs, intending to get her bag, but when Jack saw her face pale from the strain, he hooked the strap with his staff and held it out to her. "Thanks." she said, retrieving it from the wooden hook.

She pulled out the thin block of technology that barely passed for a phone, and the screen lit up to reveal the date. "Wow, I've been here over a week and didn't even realize it. I never was very..." she trailed off when her gaze settled on her wallpaper. "Oh no." she whispered, and horror settled onto her face in realization.

"Willow, what is it?" Jack asked when he saw her expression.

"Jack, I have to go." she said, struggling to sit up and grunting when her ribs whined in protest. He jumped up, holding her right shoulder to keep her from moving. She glared at his hand and he hesitantly pulled it back.

"Okay, I won't touch you. But you have to tell me what's going on." he said, holding his hands up, but he remained where he was. She held her phone up and his eyes focused on a picture of Willow with her arm around a little girl who couldn't be older than six. The girl had skin a rich chocolate and a small puffball ponytail, a ridiculously wide grin spread across her face.

"Who's that?" he asked, confused.

"Alysiana. Mia's daughter. I used to tutor Aly before I got a job at the coffee shop. She's eight now, and I think Hysterium is going after her." The little girl's features blurred as Willow's hand shook. "Jack, I _have_ to go back."

His hand tightened on his staff at her words. That psychedelic woman was now going after a child, apparently one that Willow knew, but she was in no shape to be leaving.

"We'll go check it out, but you need to stay here." he said, but she was already shaking her head.

"No, you don't get it. That little girl is extremely distrusting, because says she can see spirits." Jack began to ask how that was a bad thing, but Willow rolled her eyes when she saw his mouth open, and clapped her hand over it. "For Pete's sake, can I please finish?" she asked. Jack raised an eyebrow as he glanced down at her hand, but nodded. "I don't mean like Guardian spirits. I mean like dead people spirits. She was teased and bullied at school, and eventually Mia pulled her out. That's when I started tutoring her. I don't actually know if she can see the dead, and Mia doesn't want to take her to a doctor or anything, so we just leave it alone. But if that freak goes after her, there's no telling what could happen. I am one of three people she actually trusts, the other two being her parents, and she's not going to let any of you near her, Santa Clause or not." she said, her mouth moving almost as fast as Tooth's did, and she dropped her hand.

"So, this little girl can supposedly see the dead, and the only person she would trust to get her out of harm's way is you?" he summed up.

"Yeah, pretty much." she admitted.

Jack sighed, running his hands through the strands of white silk. "There's not any way to get around this, is there?" he asked.

"Unless you can get there before she does, and she has an hour head start, plus make a timid little girl trust you in under thirty seconds... no." Willow answered. Once again, she moved to stand, and she managed to get to her feet without sound, though the strain on her face was obvious and she had to brace her good arm on the chair to remain upright.

He eyed her movements. "Willow, you can barely stand. There has got to be some other way."

"Jack, we don't have the time." she said, her voice tight. Her hand slowly unclenched the chair and after a moment, she was standing without support.

He gave her an uncertain look, before stepping forward. She tried to lift her arm around his neck, but she could barely raise it higher than her own shoulder.

"This isn't going to work." he said, and before he could protest, he leaned down and gently scooped her up.

"Jack, this isn't necessary." she said, cheeks turning sanguine. "I can hold on, it won't be that bad."

"You're not that heavy, and, like you said, we don't have the time for this." With that, his feet left the floor and they sailed out the window.

"What about the others?" she asked, holding her hair from her face with one hand.

"If that little girl is as paranoid as you say, they won't be able to help us. We'll have to tell them eventually, but right now, we have to make sure she stays safe." He said, keeping his eyes forward as his speed increased. Then, he glanced down at her. "I know the speed isn't really your forte, but to get there..."

"Just go. I'm a lot more worried about Aly right now than I am about how fast we're going." she said. The ache in her side was beginning to dull from the icy caress of the quickly increasing winds. Her hands clutch the front of his hoodie as the ground became nothing more than a blur of white with threads of gray.

Her heart thudded with the hum of the winds, and her eyes shone with determination. Hysterium would not win.

**And this concludes my beast of a chapter. I don't think I've ever typed as fast as I did to do this, the ideas just kept pouring on and wouldn't stop. I would love to know what y'all thought of it and I hope it was enjoyed! Things are about to get interesting next chapter, and I think I'm going to start wrapping this thing up pretty soon. My chapter mark will probably hover in the lower to mid twenties, unless I come up with some huge juicy plot twist that keeps it going longer. I actually never intended for this to be longer than twelve or so chapters, but we see how well THAT worked. I went for a more reasonable number this time, but my ideas are always in a state of constant shifting. This is also why I invested in an idea book(actually, it was a birthday present, in a color I would have never chosen myself, but it works and is already a quarter full and I've only had it a month or two), so I can go back and revisit old ideas to see if they can be used for other things. I might also have ideas for, like, nine other fics in there, but I was getting grief from a friend/reviewer on how I should finish some of my other stories before starting new ones. She's probably right, but there's so many storied to do, and so little time to type them! But, somehow, I will manage, because I actually have my own, granted quite small, group of people who like me and want me to keep updating my stuff. It is because of all of y'all that I update! Thanks for the support!(Wow, I got really mushy there all of a sudden... weird.)**


	15. Mind Games

**Hey, look who's not dead! Yes, it's been quite some time since I've updated, but life has decided to shove every possible complication in front of me that can possibly be given to any one person in such a short period of time! Six hours of History assigned every class, commissions and drawing requests left and right(I think I've accumulated over thirty at this point), seven other stories on a combination of sites that need updating because I've been neglecting it(for God's sake, I've got the next chapter for IA written, Fluffythorne, sheesh!), AND I've been packing because I'm moving. To have all of that, be fifteen with chores AND be a procrastinator... well, things will be late. But, better late than never...right? *looks away***

**Well, and the fact I'm not very happy with the first two-thirds, but I just couldn't seem to write for crap, so I just decided to live with the humiliation of a half-crap chapter. Sorry.**

**But, in my long absence, my reviews have stacked up, so I am not complaining too much, since I've given stragglers a chance to catch up!**

**Sloppy Joe 313- Oh, now I remember you! I flipped through my old reviews, and I found you in the first few pages! Welcome back! And yes, be very nervous, because I'm a very unpredictable author. So I've been told, though on another site.**

**Alysiana- Why thank you, I'm so glad you like her! I was actually leery about introducing a character that will *spoiler* play a very major part in the story so late in the story, but I'm going to keep it as is and hope I don't get too much angry ranting for it. It WAS a contest, after all.**

**alexa- Erm, well, not quite "soon" per se, but I did update! (That does count, right?)**

**Guest- Well, I'm glad you did. And, yes, almost every villain has their little scene where they just kinda talk to the protagonist, even with Pitch and Jack in the Arctic. Well, this was mine. Ooh, that sounds like a painful way to snap a rib. Much easier to just fall out of a tree. Or off of a spire on the North Pole. Not that I would know anything about the first. *strolls away whistling* Really? Well, I guess that's good for me as an author, so thank you.**

**FanGirl1567- I was trying to go for a more practical approach with this, because, yes, this is to be a JackXOC story, but I didn't want it to be the stereotypical "love at first sight" or anything, or some Mary-Sue that makes it overly obvious I would pair them. Had I not put it right in the summary that this was a JackXOC story, I think some people would question whether or not I was actually shipping them, especially with Willow's grudge for jack reading her journal. Which brings me to your calling my OC a bitch. On some level, I can understand your standpoint. He stumbles across the book, didn't realize what it was until it was too late, granted kept reading, but regretted doing so and apologized. Now, look at it from the perspective of a girl who has spent about half of her life lonely, abused and distrusting because of those things. Almost anyone she let into her life would stab her back, and thought nothing of it. She chose to take a risk with Jack, and in her mind, he broke her trust, which makes him no better than the others to her. It doesn't make him a bad person, but she was rarely around anything but liars and hypocrites, and had been molded to the belief that all people are that way. Thus, when Jack acted upon even one of those actions, it marred her ideals of him. Am I making any kind of sense? ...um, simply put, she grew up with trust issues, and Jack reading about her private emotions from when she was nine doesn't help them any. You know what? I'll just shut up now...**

**ELLE555- Well, I'm happy you would want to spend so long reading it. An epic, you say? Well, I'm not sure about that, but I'm rather happy with how much positive feedback I'm getting. As for being fifteen, yes, the complexity is up there, but I had a rather lonely childhood with only books for friends, so I became so used to complex plots, it only seemed logical to create one myself. You're not the first person to comment on this story being above the norm for someone my age, and I'm flattered to many of you think so, but I've been writing for two months shy of a year now, and my first attempt at writing was not even close to this. That story, Deadly Melody? Yeah, not quite living up to this, and it started on on another site, so the progress from there is pretty obvious. I've actually considered deleting my old stories, but I know at least two people who would go crazy if I deleted them(shaadia, shorty), so they shall remain. And, yes, 300 feet is a lot, but consider the winds buffeting upwards, the thickness of the snow, because it actually cushions much more than you would expect(personal experience), and when Jack's staff snagged her collar, it dropped the pull pretty significantly, because she did have a grip on it for a split second, but it slipped. It would be closer to falling 40 feet from the ground, if my thirty minutes of intensive calculator punching is right, because I looked all of that stuff up(force of gravity from that height, survivable impact, factoring in cushion of snow) and did the math. But if I'm wrong, we can just assume they were right, because this is fanfiction. Willow wears Converse, simply because I do. I included a footnote at the end of chapter one that my OCs are based off of myself, quite a bit and I never dress them in anything I don't personally own, to prevent them from having the stereotypical badass appearance. And yes, they are tree-climbers, because I am a tree-climber. But they are also as inept with sports as I am, so it's okay:) And don't sweat, I like long comments. i like being able to answer questions, because I know it answers them for other people, too.**

**sassysaw- Yes, but it is within this stupidity that the climax had begun, because if you guys thought things were tense before, you might want to get a stress ball or something. And yes, it make Hysterium the Queen of Insanity was no stretch for me, since I am rather insane myself. *creepy grin worthy of Slenderman***

**Guest- ...um, okay I am going to hold the assumption that you are Teshka and did not log in, unless they tell me otherwise, and I will address you as such. Don't worry about sounding harsh, because I've heard much worse than that, and if anything, you kept me from turning into one of those bitchy authors that obsessively begs for reviews every chapter. You were honest, and, to an extent, I respect that. But thank you, I'm glad you still like my story despite the griping.**

**Savarra- Great! I do quite enjoy being loved!**

**Fluffythorne- For some reason, I typed you username as Flurrythorne three times before I managed to get it right. Weird. Yes, I thought that line to be rather fitting for her, considering... well, just who she is in general.**

**MoonGirl1155(to all reviews)- No, you are neither mean nor terrible. You have this thing called a life, and I get that. And, yes, I have actually already published the first chapter of the GR fic, and I called it Arrow of Trust. In fact, I think you followed it and didn't realize it was mine, but that's cool. And yes, two light and fluffy chapters in the middle of a story always means something bad will happen. Universal law. But no, I wasn't going to make anything happen while he was gone, simply because it was the obvious route to take. Until I actually made it happen, I'm pretty sure not many people would have thought she would have fallen from the roof. Yay randomosity!(Only Artemis Fowl fans actually get that, but review and tell me who you are, because I would love to know how many of y'all there are on here!). Yes, Mary K. I felt it only right to give her a place in my story, as RotG would not be here without her. Honestly, I don't know the full details of what happened to her, and I'm only reasonably sure she died young. And just for the record, Willow did not actually jump, she was just stupid enough to get close to the edge, which caused her to slip off. Just saying. And they haven't QUITE made up yet, but both are smart enough to realize there are bigger fish to fry than their problems.**

***IMPORTANT PLEASE READ***

**To all of my lovely readers, I have started a comic of this story. It will be very slow going, as I have quite a bit on my plate at the moment, but the first part of it is currently uploaded to my DeviantArt, under the username of SilverGoddess666. If any of you have a DA, I would appreciate it if you could drop a comment on it, because I've never done a comic before and value feedback very highly, as you've all seen with this story. It will be updated in page groups, as I cannot create a cliffhanger with every page because of how the story was written. I would also like you to keep from commenting with spoilers, because I did not actually show her face yet and I have not introduced her, so please don't comment who she is. Or if you do anyways, I will just hide the comment, but it would be much easier of you didn't. But I thought it would be a nice challenge to do a comic, so I figured doing one for something people actually liked would be my best bet.**

**Okay, I will stop rambling and let you actually read the story now.**

Tiny stars dotted the ceiling with a soft artificial glow, but they produced no light to dissolve the thick shadows in the pale lavender room. No way to diminish the icy wisps that hid so seamlessly in the darkness inked onto the walls.

Hysterium gave a lopsided grin at the little girl curled beneath the deep blue quilt, more stars stitched into the fabric. The child has a fascination with anything that did not come from her home world, no doubt an extension of the so-called ghosts she could see. In the mind of someone so young, to be shunned on Earth meant more possibilities beyond it.

An unrealistic notion, granted, but there was still time for fantasies to be entertained in the girl's mind.

About another hour, by Hysterium's guess, when the Winter Spirit and her precious little Willow would finally arrive.

Then, the game would truly begin.

(*)

The steady hum of the wind in Willow's ears was just enough noise to pull her focus from the burn in her side. The sharp chill of the wind had numbed the pain considerably, but, much like the painkillers she had been put on when her collarbone was broken, the pain was by no means gone. This time, however, it did not come with the side effect of muddled thoughts.

Streaks of whites and yellows had begun to trace paths beneath them as they crossed over the mainland, sending slight waves of queasiness through her stomach. It told her just how fast they were going for such small lights to become flashing lines, but it also told her that they were nearing her own home, as well.

The trip had also given her time to fully consider what it was they were doing. A woman whom had reduced Willow to a babbling mess was going after the little girl of her only acquaintance, possibly friend, and she and Jack were not only following blindly without telling anyone where they were going, but she was severely injured, as well. If their luck with the odds held, she got the feeling that she would either walk away in critical shape, or not walk away at all. Now that she'd had the chance to dwell on her actions, she realized how completely idiotic what it was that they were doing.

She had led them both into a death trap.

Her hands tightened on the front of Jack's hoodie, and he glanced down at her.

"Is something wrong?" he asked, thinking that is was her ribs.

"I probably am about to get the both of us killed because I was too stubborn to just stay at the Pole. I'm injured and I know it, and Hysterium does too. She'll use that as an advantage and target me to distract you. Jack, what did I do?" Her voice had dropped in volume until he could barely hear her over the winds. He raised an eyebrow at the sudden outpour from her and the bluntness of her words told him that this was something she had been dwelling on for a while.

"Don't say that, we'll all be fine. All we have to do is find the little girl, Aly right?" She nodded. "Okay, we just have to find Aly and once you talk to her, everything will be fine." he said as convincingly as he could, but he knew Willow didn't buy it. They both knew it just couldn't be that easy.

"Jack, you and I both know that won't happen, because that's just too damn simple. Something will go wrong, like always, and I'm going to do nothing but hinder you because I can't do much besides walk, and even that's a struggle." she sighed in frustration. "I hate feeling so weak and vulnerable."

"Being injured does not make you weak." Jack countered. "Not mentally, anyways, and that's what counts."

"But physical inability to defend myself if just as bad. She may just play mind games, but I get the feeling she can do some physical damage, too." He could practically hear the wheels turning in her head as scenarios played out in her mind.

"Well, she's not the only one who can take a swing." he said, nodding pointedly to the staff pinned between the crook of his elbow and her knee.

"But you're not the only one she can swing at. Usually, I could just dodge it, but that's not really an option and Aly can't protect herself. She's only eight." Willow closed her eyes as the stress mounted.

"Don't worry about that, I'll keep you both safe." Jack told her as soothingly as he could, but his words only seemed to stress her further.

"_Don't worry_? Jack, if I _don't worry_, I'll end up getting Aly or myself killed, because I didn't take this seriously enough. The more I worry about everything now, the less stressful this will feel later, because everything that _could_ happen can't all happen without there being some kind of freaky reincarnation crap going on and... I'm making no sense, am I?" she asked, when Jack's features slipping from reassuring to flat out confused.

"You lost me when you were explaining why you needed to worry."

She rolled her eyes. "That was the only thing I was talking about." she said, already knowing where the conversation was headed.

"Maybe that's some kind of indication that you're over thinking things. I kind of get what you meant about needing to worry. All these possibilities keep popping into your head, and you tell yourself that they can't all happen. But then you started with something about reincarnation, and then you completely lost me." he said with a lopsided grin, but she did not return it.

"Honestly, I'm not sure what that was supposed to be, either. I'm thinking that was my mind moving faster than my mouth, and what happened to be said was what made no sense unless you heard what I was thinking first." she mused, before realizing Jack was smirking down at her. A distraction. He had gotten her rambling on about nonsense to keep her from worrying.

"We're almost there." he said, snapping her focus back to the current problem.

"Okay, but what are we supposed to do when we get there?" she asked.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, considering it _is_ four in the morning, Aly will be asleep, and I can hardly just start banging on Mia's front door to let me in with an invisible Winter Spirit to keep some insane spirit-woman from going after her kid." Willow said flatly.

Jack was silent for a few minutes as he considered her words. A child with such trust issues would hardly leave her window open and Jack doubted there would be another way into the house.

Willow pinched the bridge of her nose as she grumbled over her own stupidity. "And we didn't even tell anyone where we were going, so by the time any of the others figure out what's going on and where we are, it'll be too late." Her earthen eyes scanned the horizon, spotting the commemorative statue that stood in front of the Burgess Library. She also noticed with a note of surprise at the Christmas decorations decorating the town. She hadn't realized it, but the holiday was only a week away.

They slowed as the square neared and Jack lightly landed on the ground. He gently set Willow's feet on the ground, but she was able to stand upright a bit easier than he would have thought.

"I think the cold is killing some of the pain, but it won't late long." she told him, sharp pinpricks already beginning to pepper her side.

"Which means we have to hurry. Do you know where Mia lives?" he asked.

"Of course." she said, a bit harshly. She still hadn't completely forgiven him for the journal incident. "I've been tutoring her for almost two years. Do you know where that little florists' shop is, just a couple blocks from the park?" He nodded. "She lives about three streets behind it. There should be a white SUV in front of it with a cracked rear windshield."

"Alright, let's go."

"No, let me walk. I just weigh you down, and if I'm not with you, it'll throw her off. Lure her outside and try to leave a way for me to get inside and I'll take care of Aly." she said, but Jack was already shaking his head.

"There's no way you'll get there without doing some serious damage to yourself. Let me get you close, then you'll only have to walk a couple of blocks." he offered.

"And if she attacks us in the air? You can't hold your staff and carry me at the same time." she argued.

He stared at her for a long moment. "Well, that's not necessarily true. You could ride on my back, if you could hang on, but..." he trailed off.

Willow raised an eyebrow at his suggestion. It would probably work, despite the soreness of her arm, and now was a bad time to be letting grudges get in the way.

She sighed for, what felt like, the hundredth time that early morning. "I don't really have another option, do I?"

"Not really. I'm not going to let you try to walk that far, but we're sitting ducks if she attacks us flying." She couldn't help but be irritated over hoe sound his reasoning was. She cursed under her breath and stepped forward.

She locked her arms around Jack's icy neck carefully, so he could still breathe, but was grateful he could not see the blush on her face when she hooked her knees over his hips. Her side whined in protest at the sudden pressure, but she gritted her teeth and forced herself to ignore it.

"Ready?" he asked over his shoulder.

"No, but I don't have any other choice." she grumbled. Jack leapt as gently as he could, but it didn't stop a small spasm of pain from shooting through her side at the motion.

She peered over his shoulder, squinting through the waving strands of ivory as they rode the wind. After a minute, the pink flash of the awning in front of the florist shop told her they were close.

"Right there." she told him, pointing to an intersection one street over. He nodded and their altitude began to drop.

She was climbing from his back the moment they touched the ground, her hasty actions bringing forth a short gasp as she rattled her break.

"Whoa, easy." Jack said, holding her upright when she began to double over, but she lightly pushed him back.

"No, I'm fine, I'll manage. Go." she said, masking the pain and forcing herself to stand upright.

He flashed a doubtful look, but they were running out of time. Already knowing he would regret it, he took off once more, leaving her in the pale circle of light beneath the dismal street lamp.

(*)

_Oh, how boring it will be if they don't show_. Hysterium mused, beginning to grow bored. The spirit and girl should have been here by now, and the waiting game was not very amusing to the woman.

However, no sooner had the thought crossed her mind, did frost begin to creep across the girl's window, much faster than it would have naturally. In fact, it was completely coated in a matter of seconds, casting blurry silhouettes of the planetary stickers in the glass.

"Ah, finally. But he's going to have to do better than that. I'm not so easily lured as a little ice on a window." she murmured. Her hand extended from the shadow, encased in a glove of cerulean. "Guardian of Fun, hm? Well, let's see if you can handle my brand of fun."

Thread-like tendrils of mist curled from her hand, before snaking through the air and moving right through the glass and ice, leaving little round ripples in the ice.

And, just like that, she had begun her most exciting game yet.

(*)

With every step, Willow's movement became more labored. Her breath came in short pants and she concentrated very hard on Aly's face. The little girl pushed another round of energy into her tired body.

The house wasn't far off, but every step was its own little battle and every movement had to be fought for. The numbness the wind had given her was quickly wearing off, and one step too hard sent bolts of electricity through her.

But if it kept Aly safe, it was worth it.

The white gleam of Mia's car was only a few meters away, and the night was quiet. However, quiet was not what it needed to be, because that meant something hadn't gone right, and Hysterium was still inside.

She had just reached the car, bracing herself against it with one hand, when she heard a low _thump._ Well, it _had_ been quiet.

She slipped behind the car, peering through the windows as she waited for the source of the noise to come into view.

(*)

Jack was perched on the edge of the roof, waiting for the strange woman to come out. She had to know he was there. he had circled to the back of the house, assuming that Aly's room was the one with the stickers on the window. A quick layer of ice, and then waiting.

It had been a good few minutes, but still nothing. He wondered if she was simply ignoring him. He stood and leaned against his staff, then pushed it from his body. The smooth wood dropped from his hand when the little wisps of blue began wrapping around his hand.

"What's this?!" Are you really such a coward you can't fight me yourself?" he called, touching the end of the staff. Ice crawled up its length and the wisps recoiled from it. He reached and picked it up, but when he turned, he saw this... thing.

It looked like a roughly spun cloth doll, but tendrils of ice crept down his freezing spine at it's appearance. A mess of deep russet stained waves were hastily sewn to its head, splaying over the hauntingly familiar black cotton jacket, and ratty boots were tied to its feet.

"Willow...?" Jack whispered, confused. The doll's button eyes stared at him with a frighteningly tangible plastic gaze and the thread grin seemed to curve tauntingly. Though the poppet did not move, it seemed to creep closer in its incessant chatter.

_I knew I couldn't trust you..._

_The one thing I wanted to stay hidden..._

_Why did you open it..._

Jack's breathing sped as the soundless whispers screamed with their overbearing silence, crying out into the abyss of his guilt-ridden thoughts. Willow's voice shouted accusations, and though he knew the wordless rants were an illusion, every last one of them carried unmistakable truth. As much as he wanted to simply ignore them, he couldn't and allowed them to gnaw at his clouding thoughts.

"Please, I did it for you! I didn't want to lie, but I didn't have another choice! She warned us what you would do, and I... I couldn't bear the thought of you getting hurt again." he pleaded desperately to the relentless murmurs, but to no avail.

Flashes of the ghostly blue flickered at the edges of his vision, but seemed to fizzle from existence whenever he looked away from the doll. His hands held fast to his staff, but that was all it did. He seemed unable to strike out, but even if he could, what is it he would lash at? Murmurs carried by silence held no form to hit, no body to incapacitate. Sound had no place in the bodily world, but the mental one.

An unfortunate advantage that made fighting it off unimaginably more difficult.

By some unknown trigger, Jack suddenly began swinging his staff blindly, a vain attempt to force back the whispered accusations, the murmured truths. His eyes wide, yet unseeing, his thoughts shrouded by doubt, panic... and hysteria.

_Just watched as I fell..._

_Even _pushed_ me off..._

_Could've caught me..._

Pushing the facts, stretched truths were fed into the guilt assault and creating notions that her slip was not only worsened by him, but his fault entirely.

He shouted into the increasing wind, his control beginning to slip, but he was beyond such realizations.

An unfortunate fact for anyone walking alone, especially someone who could barely walk as it was.

(*)

Hysterium's head tilted ever so slightly at the quiet thumps of what could only be the Winter Spirit's footsteps. Ah, so he had met her little pet.

She tsked as the volume of the thumping increased.

"If you're not careful, you'll wake the little girl..." she cooed, a few disjointed scraped joining the thumps. Her cold eyes flicked to the child as she stirred lightly beneath the thick nest of blankets and quilts. If she had any kind of kindred emotion left, Hysterium might have found the girl almost... cute. Despite being eight years old, her face still held a hint of infantile plumpness, and the tiny pin curls danced across her cheeks and over her shoulders, even in her sleep. Little bow lips were currently drawn to a small frown, marring the lighthearted innocence of the cherubic face.

A flash from the window brought an amused grin to Hysterium's face. Such impeccable balance to slip from the roof. The girl murmured unintelligibly for a moment.

"Don't worry, dear, it will all be over soon."

(*)

Willow watched through the glass with a wary eye. There was a slight shift of movement in the thick shadows, but it was gone just as fast as she had seen it. Then, a fountain of snow was thrown from the ground as Jack skidded through the yard. He was on his feet almost immediately, but the wild look in his eyes kept Willow from calling out.

He began swinging his staff erratically, and she cursed. So, Hysteruim must be showing him the illusions now, as well. She was about to try and slip around the side of the house, but did a double take at the thin blue haze on his staff. Wherever he touched it, the normally pure white frost that followed his grip was tinged with blue.

"The staff..." she whispered, realizing that the psychotic woman must be channeling her power through the staff. Of course. Jack knew of the little mind games she so liked to play, and probably could have ignored them, but with his own power turned against him...

Regrettably clever.

While leaving her unable to do anything but either watch, or get the staff out of his grip, which still left her with only the latter if they were going to be able to help Aly.

She internally groaned at the conclusion she was stuck with, taking a moment to press a handful of snow to her side, then stepping out from behind the car.

Her initial hope of escaping Jack's notice until close enough to grab his staff immediately was quashed when his deranged gaze zeroed in on her almost instantly.

"No, not real!" he shouted, lunging forward at her.

Eyes widening, she sidestepped quickly, hoping it would be enough. The air whistled between them at their proximity, and she felt the end of his staff graze her jacket.

"Jack, stop! She's just trying to get into your mind, but I'm not an illusion!" she said, more bolts of white agony stretching through her torso at the sudden motion.

He hesitated, the curved wood dipping six inches. "Y-You're not an illusion?" he asked uncertainly.

"No, I'm not. Whatever she's showing you, it's not there. You have to trust me." she said as calmly as she could manage.

"Trust... she thought she could trust me." Anguish laced his voice and his hands tightened on the staff. "I didn't mean to, I didn't know it was a journal." No longer speaking to her, his voice began to rise in volume once more. He shuffled a few steps closer, but did not seem to be seeing her. She eyed the staff, the hooked end only a couple of feet away. But once she grabbed it, then what? If she tried to pull on it, she was almost positive the pain would incapacitate her.

It was a risk she had to take, and hope she caught him off guard and he didn't fight back.

A careful step forward brought no reaction from the crazed spirit, and she slowly reached out. The smooth wood hovered beneath her hand and, after a moment of hesitation, she wrapped her fingers around it and pulled with all the strength she could muster.

Spots of red and black joined each other in a cotillion of fiery agony, dancing with an almost mocking merriment as she tumbled backwards into the snow. She could do little but lay there and gasp for several seconds, unable to focus on anything but the touch of torment that violently gnawed at her body. It took every bit of willpower she still had some sort of grasp on not to scream and writhe.

A haze of white and blue appeared and Jack's voice spoke through a deep cavern before reaching her.

"_Oh my god, Willow! What were you _thinking_?!"_ He cried.

"I was thinking I needed you sane to pull this stunt off." she grunted, voice tighter than a violin string.

He rolled his eyes, but it did nothing to make the worry that all but blinded him. Her hands were still curled around the end of his staff in a death grip, and he first assumed it was because of the pain, but when he reached for it, she pulled it away, shaking her head stiffly.

"Don't touch it. I saw Hysterium's magic on it whenever you were holding it. It's what was making you see things." she managed, before scooping some snow into her palm with a rather clumsy hand. She held it carefully to her side, grunting at the pressure, but after a couple of minutes, her breathing began to even out and her grip on his staff began to loosen.

Once the snow had melted in her fingers, she braced it beside her and tried to push herself upright. Instead, she managed to shift upwards about two inches, before letting out a yelp and hissing as her back hit the ground.

"Well, that didn't work." she mumbled. "A little help?"

Jack raised an eyebrow, a bit surprised she would actually ask for help, but slipped an arm behind her shoulders without a word. He saw her jaw clench as he lifted her torso, but she did not cry out again. Once upright, her left hand remained clenched tightly, but she seemed able to keep herself up without further difficulty.

"As I was saying, wherever you touched your staff, I saw the blue from her magic. I figured she was turning your own power against you." She pulled the staff into her lap, then glanced up at Jack. "Can you touch it again? I want to make sure that it's not still affecting it, but if it is, I can pull it away this time." she explained.

He nodded, then reached out to lightly touch the wood. White frost branched out from his touch, and remained colorless.

After a moment, just to be sure, Willow released his staff, confident the magic was now gone. Then, she began the slow process of shifting to stand, but didn't get far before Jack was holding her shoulders to keep her from moving.

"Wait, don't try to get up." he said, earning a glare beneath the mahogany arch of her eyebrow. "If you do, you'll just hurt yourself worse."

"So, I suppose I'm supposed to spend the night, in the snow, on Mia's front lawn?" she asked dryly.

"No, I'm saying wait a minute for me to think of something." he answered.

She sighed. "Jack, there's hardly the time for that. If I can manage to stand, I'll live through it." She folded her leg beneath her and used it to push upright, only remaining standing because of Jack's grip on her arm.

"See?" she panted. "The worst of it is over, I'll be fine."

Jack gave her a long look, obviously not believing her. Sighing, he slipped his staff back into her hand. She gave him a curious look, but he shook his head. "Hold on to it, because I really don't think you'll make it far without collapsing. You shouldn't be walking, and this is the best I can do."

Though she would never admit it out loud, he was right. Nodding, she wrapped her hand firmly around the surprisingly sturdy wood and stepped forward. The staff helped much more than she expected it to, as it took some of the pressure off of her side and made it much easier to walk.

"Thanks." she said. "But what are you going to do without it? You can't fly or fight."

"Well, I can't go far from you, so it won't be far off." he pointed out.

"Alright, fair enough. Better question, what now?"

**Mh, yes, what now? Well, I don't know when I can update again, because of...y'know, but I figured I would at least warn y'all this time. Oh, also, you know how I made a comment before over how I couldn't find a canvas bag like Willow's? Well, I found one, almost EXACTLY the same, so now, I could technically Coplay as her, even though I don't do Coplay, and I would look no different than I normally do, since I said I dress like her anyways. So... yeah.**


	16. Last Laugh

**'Sup guys! I updated a little sooner than usual(who am I kidding, I'm not even going to pretend I have some kind of update schedule anymore), but I HAD to get this chapter up, because it would not leave me alone. Also, I'm using it as a warning that it will be at least three weeks before I manage to update anything else(I think), because I am going to be moving then. Because of this, my spare time had just dropped from sparse to non-existent. Which will really suck for me later, but I'll get to that at the footnote at the end of the chapter.**

**Well, I don't have much to say besides that, so I'll just get onto reviews.**

**KiraTerraMika- Okay, from now on, I'm going to call you Kira, partly because I'm too lazy to type your whole username, and partly because Kira is the name of an OC in another one of my RotG stories, called Seeing Is Not Believing. Yes, I love Artemis Fowl, it's what got me in to writing fan fiction in the first place. It is because of it that this story even exists, so YAY ARTEMIS FOWL! And thank you, I love to hear people tell me they think my fic is well-written, because it gives me more confidence as a writer besides an amateur.**

**ELLE555- Um, sorry? I don't know your schedule, so I can't help it if my updates add to the chaos.:) And you check this **_**every day**_**? Wow, I think I'm going to take that as a compliment and be flattered. But addiction is good, because it keeps me motivated!**

**KikaKatTIOI- Mh, yes, who are you? Though I thing I just knocked your cliffhangers out of the ballpark with this chapter.*rubs hands together* Sweet revenge.**

**Savarra- This next! And thanks!**

**alexa- Updated!**

**sassysaw- Is this soon enough?!**

**Fellowship of Avengers- If you thought that from last chapter, you're going to flip a table after this one.**

**TippysaurusRex- (from now on, you are Tippy, because I am a lazy author and don't feel like trying out most usernames. I shorten half of my reviewers'.) My my, you **_**did**_** have quite a bit to say! I'm so happy you spent so much time and dedication reading my story! Yes, I was also very surprised by RotG's character depth. They appealed to one's emotions in a way I rarely see out of any kind of animated movie any more. I appreciate your snooping, because it apparently led you to this. As for my description, I just picked out the most attention-grabbing line and stuck it in the summary, hoping it would catch someone's attention. I guess it worked. And I have you checking it **_**every day**_**? I'm rather flattered by that, too, though I must ask, who is Milgarion? Yes, I'm fifteen, but I've been writing for three and a half months shy of a year now, so I've had plenty of time to improve. I also take the various aspects I found particularly good in a book and try to apply it to my own writing, like leaving little hints to a major plot twist, or adding in those little details that everyone on here seems to love so much. But thank you for the compliments! As for the books, I don't think I'm good enough to get a book published. I actually have several ideas for original stories, but I was just going to publish them to Wattpad and call a spade a spade. But now I'm reconsidering, just because of that. Besides, even if no one wants to publish it, I can still post it to Wattpad;) But if they don't, you don't need to give up hope on literacy, I don't think it would be all that bad, because there's MUCH better authors than me out there. But yes, I'm not really a gamer or anything. I only use the computer, and, well, internet in general, for reading or writing fanfiction and going to DeviantArt. Any other time, I will pick up a library book or my sketchbook (I like to draw, too). I also keep a little tacky journal for all of my fanfiction/story ideas, and it had become a hypothetical Bible for me. So, to feed both yours (and apparently humanity's) hope/desire, here is another chapter!**

"This is not going to work" Willow murmured. Having already spent over half an hour just trying to get Hysterium to come out of the house, they decided to try getting _into_ the house a try.

Willow was hunched behind Mia's car once again, more snow pressed against her ribs so she could remain that way without passing out. Jack was supposed to get Aly's window open, and once he managed to get the psychotic woman out, she was supposed to get Aly out of there and get her somewhere safe. She was going to try to get the little girl to the woods and hide her in the hollow tree until Hysterium had been taken care of.

Jack was perched in the bare maple tree in the middle of the yard, his staff in hand once more, glancing back at her one final time. Willow nodded and he swooped from the tree to the window.

At this point, their time and options were very limited, so he was going to simply try to open the window. Despite how direct it was, it was the fastest way they could think of to get both Hysterium out of the house, and Willow into it.

Jack stood to the side of the window, so he would not be seen, and touched the frame. Though she could not see anything, Willow knew he was freezing the lock inside, so it would break under the pressure of him lifting the window. After a few moments, his hand slipped beneath the edge and quickly shoved the pane up. There was a slight tinkling sound as the ice shattered and hit the floor, and Jack leapt through the window.

Willow's eyes were locked onto the dark square, Jack's form unseeable through the shroud of darkness. There were a couple of minutes of tense silence, no sound touching the air except for the quiet whisper of the winds. Then, ice threaded through her veins when a thick cloud of icy blue billowed from the window, the pillar of pastel smoke solidifying into the jet black of the insane woman's dress. The same thin tendrils floated away from the ends of her hair, sleeves and skirt hem, but in a more stiff, uniform pattern than before. Agitation was etched clearer than a marker on her cherubic face. Had one not known better, you would think her to be a person who could do no wrong. Pretty features and wide eyes that oozed innocence.

Seconds later, Jack had slipped back out the window, he and the Queen of Insanity locked in the most intense glaring contest in Guardian history.

"Well, that wasn't very nice." Hysterium pouted.

"Neither is stalking an eight-year-old." Jack countered dryly.

"Stalking? No, no, I was simply visiting the little girl!" she trilled, the falsetto striking the air with a sharp ring.

"Oh, please."Visiting" from a dark corner of the room and watching her sleep? That's just plain creepy." he retorted, dipping his posture into a defensive stance.

A musical chime emitted from Hysterium's mouth, but the melodious laughter soon shifted to a sinister cackle. "Creepy? To call such a simple notion "creepy" is a bit of an exaggeration, _boy_. No, I will show you _creepy_."

Her hands clenched and Willow's eyes widened at the wicked glint of the small, black shruikan knife in each one. Both were simple in design and deceptively small, however, when the petite woman's arms whipped back and let the tiny daggers fly, they missed Jack by a hair's breadth before sinking nearly hilt-deep into the hibernating maple. If he had not ducked a fraction of a second later, they would have hit home in his chest.

The white-haired boy was immediately on alert, loosing half a dozen bolts of ice in succession. Hysterium's small form dodged the first few with apparent ease, but for the remainder, her form blurred to blue smoke and they whipped through the cloud. She solidified, but her face was drawn into a grimace. So, if something struck the fog, it still hurt her.

Dodging another round of the shruikans, Jack sent a wave of ice at her, pushing Hysterium back a good ten feet. He just had to distract her long enough for Willow to slip inside. Another flash of ice, then freezing the knives in the air. They fell to the ground with a heavy _thunk_.

Willow edged around the SUV as they moved out of the yard, the pain in her side having shifter to a sharp, constant burn of which she had gotten used to enough that she could ignore it for the time being. Within another few minutes, Hysterium was fully concentrated on Jack, and they were both out of the yard. Jack flicked his hand toward the window from behind his back, signaling Willow.

Taking a deep breath, she stepped from behind the cover of Mia's car and walked across the yard as quickly as her side would allow her, almost managing a jog. Her long strides brought her to the window in a matter of seconds, the adrenaline suppressing her pain. She glanced into the open window to see Aly still curled up asleep beneath the galaxy quilt, though the little girl's brows were furrowed.

Stepping into the room with the practiced motion of using a window as a door, Willow crept up to her bed. The chill of the room from the open window had Aly clutching the blankets close. For a moment, Willow did not want to wake the girl, but she shook her head. If she didn't, they would be right back where they started.

"Aly, wake up!" she whispered sharply, lightly shaking her shoulder. Her eyes popped open almost immediately, fear flashing in their deep brown depths for a moment, before recognition flickered.

"Willow? What are you doing here?" the girl whispered, glancing at the clock. "It's four thirty!"

"I know, but you have to listen to me. You're in danger." Aly's eyes widened, but she nodded. For once, Willow was actually glad for her supposed ability. It made situations like this much easier to handle for someone so young. "There's someone trying to hurt you, but I'm going to keep you safe. I have a friend with my, his name is Jack Frost."

"Like the winter story?"

"Yes. He has white hair and a blue jacket. He carries a wooden staff with a curved end. He won't hurt you, he's here to protect you, too, okay?" Aly nodded, though her hesitation was clear.

"Okay. Now, come with me. I'm going to take you somewhere safe." she said, holding out her hand.

"Wait, what about Mama and Dad?" she asked.

"Don't worry, they're safe. I'll have you back before they know it." she smiled as reassuringly as she could. Aly slipped out of bed, and Willow was glad to see her pajamas were both long-sleeved and flannel. The young girl shoved her feet into a pair of snow boots, and then grabbed Willow's hand.

They walked to the window, and Willow glanced around to make sure Hysterium had not returned, before stepping back out into the snow. She held out her right hand to help pull Aly through the frame. Once they were both outside, Willow tugged the window back down, leaving a gap just big enough to slip her fingers under.

"Okay, we're going to go to the park. I have a place for you to hide." Willow said, grasping the girl's hand. Aly began to run, but stopped when she ended up jerking Willow's arm.

"What's wrong? What aren't you running?" she asked when she saw the older girl gasping.

"I got a bit hurt, but I'll be alright." she answered. Grinding her teeth so that her jaw ached, she began to jog. It didn't hurt as much as she expected it to, as it was a very uneven jog. She mostly pushed off with her right foot, landing strangely on her left to help absorb the impact. It still hurt like the touch of death, but it was not unbearable to the point she had to stop, though adrenaline still played a fairly large part in that.

Aly kept up with Willow's limping gait rather easily, though the cold nipped at her small body. She watched as her closest friend struggled to keep moving, just to keep her safe.

She knew one thing for certain. She chose the right person to put her trust into.

(*)

Jack ducked again, the tiny knife whizzing above his head. Three strands of his snowy hair drifted in front of his face, before joining the equally white flakes coating the ground.

"Oh, such a shame to cut that pretty hair!" Hysterium cackled, sidestepping to avoid the thin stream of compacted ice rocketing towards her. Three more knives appeared in between each of her fingers, and her hands arced to let one from each hand fly.

Jack rolled forward, swinging his staff before he had even straitened. The hooked end managed to catch one of her ankles, jerking her to the snow. Thick strands of ebony hair were thrown into her face as she landed. Shoving them from her eyes, she looked up to see Jack standing over her, staff inched from her face.

"Not so cocky now, are we?" he asked.

"Oh, you got me." she rolled her eyes and her body dissolved into the ground.

Jack cursed, whipping around to find the maniacal woman.

Haunting laughter echoed above his head, and he looked to see her in the high branched of a pine tree. She peered down at him, swinging her feet lightly.

"What a misguided little Winter Spirit. Don't you know that you can't corner a Creature? We all have intangibility, just in different ways. You can't honestly tell me you haven't seen Pitch shadow travel." she teased.

"Pitch is a Creature?" he asked, allowing his curiosity to show.

"Of course. Did you honestly think that the Man in the Moon would create such a sinister Spirit? No. He serves his purpose in the world, just like the rest of us do, but Creatures are far more unpredictable than you Spirits. There's no telling if we'll be good or stray to the dark side." she chuckled, before dissolving once more.

"Besides," her voice cooed seductively into his ear, "Do you really think old Tsar Lunar would have the Guardians do his dirty work if he couldn't just do it himself? No. The Moon holds no influence over Creatures. We are created through interference of another Creature, but only if they have affected enough of their true being."

"Wait, what?" Jack asked, slightly confused. Her explanation had drifted to an area he wasn't really sure how to comprehend.

"Ah, ah. I've said too much." she said, her form blurring once more. "I think it's time I check up on that little girl anyways. Nice try to get me out of her room, but I knew that Willow was here the whole time. Do you think I really don't keep up with my pawns?" With that, she was gone with a thin wisp if blue in her wake.

(*)

The thick silhouettes of trees seemed to reach for them as Willow and Aly moved through the forest. Willow looked up at the nearly full disk in the sky, the soft glow barely reaching them through the dense trees.

_Please, Manny, if you're there. Keep Aly safe._

Willow tugged the girl between the trees, moving more from memory than actual sight. If she remembered correctly, the pond should only be a couple more minutes away.

Her thoughts sang with scenarios, and her concentration slipped from the smallest second, but it was enough. her boot caught the exposed root of an ancient oak tree, and she fell into the snow.

A single cry ripped from her throat as her side flared sharply. _Well, there goes not moving the break._

"Willow!" Aly scrambled to pull the older girl from the snow, pulling her arm around her tiny shoulders and holding her without much strain, since she wasn't all that heavy. "Come on, we have to go!"

With a grunt, Willow forced her legs to keep moving, though the pain was definitely hindering her this time. She began speaking, forced to give vocal directions to the girl.

"Okay, just a little further. When we get to the pond, there's a tree with a big rock against it. That's the hollow one. Go to the right." she directed when the almost nonexistent path forked. "The pond should be a minute away, going straight."

The night was quiet, save for the rough shuffle of Willow's steps and the soft whisper of Aly's. Willow could almost see the pond, when the inevitable, almost expected, tendril of blue snaked into their path.

Willow stopped when it swirled into a slender pillar, and she pushed Aly behind her back. Her eyes narrowed in pure hatred when Hysterium's form took shape, but the maniacal woman simply smirked.

"Going somewhere, dear?" she asked softly, but the malice was unmistakable.

She felt Aly's fingers clutch the back of her jacket. "Maybe I am. Lovely night for a stroll."

Hysterium chuckled, bringing an almost inaudibly whimper from Aly. "Well, I'm afraid it has to be cut a bit short. I'm going to make this simple. Give me the girl, or I will take her anyways. I'm not going to harm her, but she has a remarkable gift. I want to train her."

"Over my dead body."

She sighed and shrugged. "Suit yourself, my dear. You were a good pawn while it lasted, I got my information, but you've outgrown your usefulness. You've developed a mind of your own, and we can't have that." The dull glint of the knives in her hand pushed Willow to curve her body further around Aly's tiny frame. The pain in her side was well down the list of her concerns, and she barely felt it. Standing strong, she braced herself, knowing she was about to play the most dangerous game of keep away in her life.

Hysterium tapped her chin thoughtfully. "Though, that was never an issue until that little Winter Spirit stumbled across you. I suppose I'm going to have to get rid of him once I'm through here, hm?"

Her hand flicked with lightning reflexes, and Willow only barely managed to dodge the knife. She pushed Aly into the snow, before blocking the girl with her own body. "Keep behind me, and if I tell you to run, _run_, understood?" she hissed. Eyes wide, Aly nodded.

Willow pulled the girl from the snow, pushing her head down, and then ducking as another knife whistled over their heads. "I'm going to get you to the tree. When I do, climb up the inside, there are little grooves to grab. There's a branch not too far up with a hole in it from the inside. Pull on it, and that branch is hollow." She crept around the tree, using the thin wisps that trailed from Hysterium's being as an indicator to where she was. "There's going to be a few things inside. Just push them out and climb inside, make sure to put back the cover. Can you do that?"

Aly nodded once more, but tugged her sleeve, before saying, "Willow, I'm scared. That crazy woman is trying to hurt you, and I don't want you hurt. You're my best friend!"

A pang shot through Willow's chest at her words. "I know, but don't worry. I'm going to be okay, because Jack will be here soon. Remember him? He's going to help us. Just get to the tree, you'll be safe in there. My Papa and I spent two years hollowing out almost the whole thing, so you'll be protected. Just make sure you close it tight and don't make any noise, okay?"

They darted behind another tree, the soft gleam of the pond's ice now visible.

"Aly? Where are you my sweet girl? I'm not going to hurt you. If you come out, I'll leave your friend alone." Hysterium's voice echoed.

"Don't listen to her." Willow whispered. "She's not telling the truth."

"Willow? Please be okay." Aly whispered. She wrapped her little arms around her slender waist. "I love you, and I don't want to lose my friend."

It took every shred of Willow's remaining willpower not to cry at her words. She whispered her _it'll be alrights_ and whatnot, but she knew it wouldn't be alright. Hysterium would stop at nothing to get her and Jack "out of her way", but as long as Aly was safe, Willow could handle that. Jack could take care of himself, and that was all that mattered.

Jack. Now that it was down to the wire, she regretted the things she had said. When lives hung in the balance, something live an accidentally found journal seemed so insignificant and petty. She pushed him away, just like everyone else, over some stupid book she should have probably burned years ago. Or thrown it into the lake, too.

And now, she was probably going to end up either extremely hurt or dead and the last thing he's going to remember are the horrible things she said.

Well, if she couldn't set things right with, what she now realized was, the one person she cared about most, she was damn sure going to protect the other most important person in her life, with her life in necessary.

"Go!" She pushed the little girl forward. Almost there, just a few more-

"I'm sorry, dear, but I just can't let you get closer than that."

Willow froze. She turned to see Hysterium glaring at her, the usual mocking smirk long gone.

"It's nothing personal, but this simply can't keep happening. You've made a nasty habit of meddling in my plans, so I've decided to remove the problem at its source." Her chin tilted downwards, and her eyes took on an eerie glow. A single knife danced through her fingers, intricate flips and weaving trailed by the thin layer of blue mist that clung to the blade.

"No, leave her alone!"

Ice clutched Willow's heart at the defiant voice. Before she could stop her, Aly stepped out from behind her, the girl's usual timid air abandoning her.

Hysterium's icy gaze flicked to the little girl. "Ah, there you are! Have you decided to take my offer?"

Willow went to pull the girl back behind her, but Hysterium's focus snapped back to her. "You move another inch, and I'll kill you right now. Then who'll protect the little brat." she spat, and Willow reluctantly withdrew.

"If I go with you, you won't hurt Willow, right?"

"Of course, my dear! But you have to promise to be a good girl. I can't have an insubordinate little pet, now can I? Obedience is everything." she chided.

"Pet? I'm not gonna be your pet! I just don't want you to hurt Willow!" Aly replied, shivering in her pajamas.

"Well, that's the deal, hon. You come with me and I train you and refine your abilities to suit my needs. In exchange, your friend lives to see another day." Willow opened her mouth, trying to tell Aly it was all a lie, but Hysterium snapped, "Not a word, or it may not just be you that gets hurt."

Lividity rolled off of her in waved, but Willow remained silent.

"How will you train me? I have to go home!"

"If you take me offer, you won't be going home. I have a new home for you. Don't worry, your parents will get over it, and it's not like there's anyone else to miss you."

Aly's eyes widened. "No, you can't do that! I don't want to go!"

Hysterium gave a melodramatic sigh. "I was afraid of this. If you won't come with me, you're simply no use to me anymore."

Time slowed down in Willow's mind. She saw every twitch of the mad woman's muscles, every shift of her eyes as her target shifted, every little movement as her arm drew back.

"_No!"_ she shrieked, leaping in front of Aly as her arm snapped forward. The pretty little knife tumbled end over end, reflecting moonlight in flashes that almost spoke to Willow. _I protected her, but this was the cost_ they seemed to say.

She hit the snow, not feeling anything now, no pain, no relief, nothing but rage. She turned to Aly. "_Go, now! GO!"_

The little girl sprinted off, and Willow rose to her feet, hate and anger burning bright in her eyes.

"Quite the stick in the mud, aren't you?" Hysterium mused.

Instead of replying, Willow did the last thing the insane woman expected. She lunged at her.

"You have taken _everything_ from me! My father, my childhood, my goddamn _sanity!_ I don't know who the _hell_ you think you are, but _I am through with your shit!_" she screamed, pinning her arms to the snow they had fallen into after Willow tackled her. "Something good happens to me, I get I friend who actually _cares_ about me, and you ruin that, too! Now, he'll remember me as the bitch who gave him the cold shoulder the last time she saw him! I never even got the chance to tell him-" she faltered, and her guard dropped by a fraction, but it was enough. Hysterium dissolved from beneath her.

"You're right, I did." she said from behind her, no remorse whatsoever in her voice. "And apparently it was a wasted effort, because you're not going to make it to sunrise, I'll see to that."

Willow lunged again, but this time, it was expected. Hysterium sidestepped, but reached out as she did so, her fingers grasping the collar of her jacket and shirt, deepening the existing rip in her shirt.

"It's a pity you just didn't submit to me, I would have taken you away from your mother and I could have used this feisty temper to my advantage. But now, you're in my way." Her other hand came up, poised between their chests'. "But this is the last time you interfere."

Her hand thrust forward, pushing the knife already lodged in her chest in until the hilt met her skin.

Willow screamed out as the blade severed her flesh like ice, the hilt bruising her skin. Hysterium released her collar and she crumpled to the ground.

The only thing that showed Hysterium had ever been there was the thin trail of blood leading away from Willow's curled form that dripped from her fingers and a ghostly laugh.

(*)

Jack's eyes scanned the dense trees desperately, praying to any deity that would listen that he would find Willow and Aly.

He should have never let her go alone. Nothing ever goes right when they split up.

No sooner had he thought that, did he hear a loud shriek.

"_No!"_

"Willow." he whispered.

"_Go now, GO!"_

Jack looked for the source of the sound, but he just couldn't place it. He stopped, listening carefully.

"_You have taken _everything_ from me!"_

There! He looked over to barely make out the tiny shapes of Willow and Hysterium, and he couldn't help but feel a swell of pride when he saw her pinning the Creature to the snow. It was short lived, however, because she disappeared just like she had with him.

He heard a bloodcurdling shriek of pain, and his heart dropped to the ground. He watched as Willow crumpled to the ground, and Hysterium walk away, before vanishing.

"_Willow!"_ he shouted, slamming into the ground.

His staff slipped from his fingers as he dropped to the ground beside her head. She was curled in on herself, but the blood that was slowly soaking the snow was more than enough. For the first time in decades, tears pricked at his eyes.

Her head weakly turned, snow stuck to her hair that was matted into thick clumps. "H-Hey, Jack."

It took everything he had to muster the pathetic excuse of a smile he plastered on. "Hey."

Shifting her position, Willow turned to lie on her back, holding herself up with her elbows. Tugging at the fabric of her jacket, she pulled it aside to reveal the knife in her chest. After a moment, she grunted and fell back into the snow.

"Well, there goes my day." she said wryly, forcing a rough chuckle, but it quickly turned to a grimace of pain.

Jack could only stare in horror at the knife buried hilt-deep into her chest, fear gripping him as blood dripped from it in thick rivulets before falling to the snow. A single tear budded in his eye, before falling. It froze halfway down his face.

"Nah, it'll be fine." he murmured, not believing himself for a second.

Her lips pulled into the most miniscule smile, and she tried to laugh, but it ended up a cough. Blood dripped onto her lips and sprayed on the snow, marring the stark white perfection.

Jack's heart seemed to rip from his chest at the sight of it. He gently pulled her onto his lap, stroking her tangled hair. She gasped at the motion, but did not cry out. Her breath became more ragged by the minute and she struggled to keep her eyes open and hold the blissfully ignorant darkness at bay that crept at the edges of her vision.

He grasped her hand, but the chill of her skin only frightened him more. He couldn't remember the last time he was this afraid. He struggled to find words, but there simply wasn't anything he could say. More tears froze to his alabaster face.

She began to wheeze and choke, fighting to breathe. More droplets of blood flew from her lips, joining the others on the snow. Finally, she reached up and placed a hand on his cheek, the blood on her fingers in stark contrast with his skin.

"Jack." she whispered, her voice barely audible.

"I'm right here." he said, holding her hand to his cheek.

"I'm sorry I was such an ass. It was a stupid book, and I overreacted. Thank you for being there when I thought I was alone. I want you to know that you're the best thing that ever happened to me and I would trade everything for another minute with you." Tears traced the blood on her cheeks as she gasped again, stuttering through her words. "No one in my life has ever meant as much to me as you. Promise me you won't forget me. Promise me, because... be-cause I..."

She never finished, though. Her hand slipped from his face, leaving four streaks across his pallid skin. Her other hand slackened in his grip as her eyes fluttered closed.

For a moment, he seemed unable to process what exactly had just happened. Eventually, though, it registered that her chest was still and she was not moving.

"Willow... _Willow!_ Open your eyes, don't leave me! Please, don't do this!" Jack pleaded as more salt froze to his face. He shouted and wept, but her eyes did not open again.

Finally, his shouts subsided and he hunched forward, shoulders shaking. Her last words rang through his head relentlessly. He laid her head gently onto the snow, her blood staining his hands crimson and his hoodie dark. Still shaking, he pulled her jacket to cover the knife. Her words haunted his mind again.

"No, I won't forget you." He chuckled mirthlessly. "How can I forget the only person I ever fell for?"

He kissed her forehead, before picking up his staff. He did not look back as he leapt into the sky, the glittering starts mocking him with the beautiful night sky.

Scraping the salted ice from his cheeks, his eyes narrowed, becoming cold and unremorseful. The hunt had begun.

Hysterium would pay.

**...um, yes. So, please don't call the National Guard, or anything, since I can't update for three weeks. At least I didn't do what Kika did, because she left cliffhangers three updates in a row for three different stories. Thank god I only have this one.**

**So, erm... review?**


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